Pokemon 101: Kanto
by The-Writing-Dragon
Summary: Join novice Trainer Demitri Douniiru as he travels across Kanto, getting Gym Badges, fighting the forces of evil, and trying to live up to his family's lofty reputation...not that he WANTS to.
1. Expectations

**Hello, hello everyone; I apologize for my lengthy absence, i had kinda lost interest in submitting here for a while given how much more complex it is compared to Deviantart. But don't worry, I'm back, hopefully to stay. for those of you that've read previously, welcome back.**

**For those of you new, welcome to Pokemon 101. After my _Tales of Mysterra _series, Pokemon 101 is my most extensive and lengthy series; as you could probably have guessed, it centers around the Pokemon franchise, primarily the games. The series is planned to have five installments, one for each generation from Kanto to Unova. To be safe, I'm gonna rate this M for the language; if anyone feels the need for me to lower it, speak up. Thank you and enjoy the read.**

Prologue

**-16 Years Ago-**

The moon was high in the sky, fireworks filling the air with loud cracks and booms as the cheer of a massive crowd ensued. The source of the noise was a large stadium, which was seemingly aglow with floodlights and fireworks. On one side of the stadium, perched atop a pedestal several stories high, was a torch, ablaze with a large, shimmering flame. On the opposite end was a very large screen, split down the middle in two colors, with 7 empty panels organized on each side. The stadium itself was filled to the brim with roaring fans in their seats overlooking the blank, dirt field below; some of the spectators carried signs with names and colorful images plastered on them. Suddenly, a loud, confident voice boomed from above, amplified by speakers. "Welcome, one and all, to the final round of the Indigo League Championships!"

Another resounding roar emanated from the crowd, as the announcer continued, "This tournament has indeed been a hot one, but the title of Champion can only go to one, and that one will be decided tonight!"

Yet another deafening cheer. "Now, here are the finalists! The current reigning Champion, having already won his spot in the League 3 times in a row, please welcome, Yuusha Douniiru!"

At this time, a rather tall, muscular man stepped forward from a door on one side of the field, waving to the fans. He wore a brown vest and khaki pants, with somewhat long, light brown hair. After he was finished appealing to the crowd, the announcer continued, "And, on the other end, the underdog of this championship; who would have thought it? She came out of nowhere, and is truly a crowd favorite! Give it up for Keikoku Ardelum!"

With this comment, a woman emerged from the other end of the field; she wore a black shirt and pants, as well as a yellow scarf that hung down to her knees. She had long, dark red hair that seemed almost brown. The two walked towards the center of the field, as a referee standing on the sidelines asked, "Alright, everyone is familiar with the rules?"

The man, Yuusha, grinned, and said, "You don't have to tell me twice."

"Likewise," the woman, Keikoku, added.

At this, the duo took their places at the opposing ends of a rectangular marking in the middle of the field. "Alright then...let the battle begin!"

Wasting no time, Yuusha reached into his vest, pulling out a small ball colored red and white, with a black band across the middle. Keikoku pulled out a ball from her pocket with a similar design, a smile creeping along her face. "You're going down, honey."

Yuusha laughed in response to this, and responded confidently, "It's you that's going down!"

Both tossed their devices into the air, causing them to burst open and let loose two flashes of light, which landed on the ground and began to take shape. On Yuusha's side, a large orange dog with black stripes adorning its body a yellow mane stepped forth, letting out a loud, deep bark. On Keikoku's side, a smaller, blue dog with a dolphin-like tail and a circular fin around its neck stepped forward, and let out a high-pitched squeal. The screen at the top lit up, showing a portrait of Yuusha and Keikoku on each side, as well as one of each of the creatures they had just sent forth. "And, it looks like Yuusha will start the battle with Arcanine! Meanwhile, Keikoku has chosen Vaporeon to lead!" the announcer called.

Yuusha furrowed his brow in thought. "So she's got a type advantage...that won't stop me!" He pointed forward, and shouted, "Arcanine, use Extremespeed!"

Suddenly, the dog vanished, kicking up a small cloud of dust where it was before, evidence of its blistering speed. Keikoku didn't seem bothered in the least, and responded, "Vaporeon, Acid Armor!"

Vaporeon crouched with this command, its body suddenly beginning to shift into a goopy liquid-like substance. Arcanine abruptly appeared where Vaporeon was once standing, and slapped at the semi-liquefied Vaporeon, splattering its form all over the ground. Keikoku retained her calm demeanor, then called, "Use Aqua Tail!"

The aquatic creature abruptly reassembled itself, slamming its partially solidified tail into Arcanine's face and sending it skidding backwards. Yuusha furrowed his brow, and shouted back, "Don't let that tiny thing show you up! Flamethrower, now!"

After shaking off the effects of the attack, Arcanine opened its mouth, several embers beginning to gather inside. These gave way to a strong jet of flames from its mouth that streaked towards Vaporeon at a high speed. The fish-like dog leaped out of the way, coming to a stop as Keikoku ordered, "Now, Hydro Pump!"

Vaporeon took a breath, its chest puffing out considerably with a faint sloshing sound. The creature abruptly shot out a large, powerful jet of water from its mouth, smashing into Arcanine and sending it toppling backwards, starting to get noticeably tired. Yuusha grunted slightly, and called, "Don't give in, Arcanine! Use Exremespeed again!"

Like before, Arcanine disappeared with a small cloud of dust. Unlike before, Vaporeon wasn't able to defend, and was smashed by Arcanine's paw, sending it toppling backwards, skidding to a halt. Keikoku let out a surprised blink as Vaporeon attempted to get back to its feet, only for Arcanine to leap into the air and pin its opponent to the ground. Keikoku finally let out a frown, then called forcefully, "Vaporeon, use Ice Beam!"

Before Arcanine could launch a counterattack, Vaporeon had shot a blast of light blue energy from its mouth, hitting its opponent directly and sending it flying backwards. The icy energy unleashed in the attack had frozen the front portion of its body, only for the icy casing to be shattered once Arcanine hit the ground. Despite this, the repeated assaults had left it unable to get up, now unconscious. "Arcanine is unable to battle! Vaporeon is the winner!" The crowd let out another excited cheer, as the announcer commented rather enthusiastically, "A magnificent display by Keikoku and her Vaporeon! It's no wonder she's so popular with our fans!"

Yuusha held up the ball-shaped device from before, prompting the button on the front to shoot a red beam of light outwards. The ray impacted Arcanine, enveloping it in the same red light and caused it to be pulled into the device. Yuusha put away the ball, though he retained a confident smirk. "Pretty impressive, sweet cheeks. But, just 'cause you got an early lead, don't think that I won't pull a fast one on you!"

Keikoku smiled at this comment, and responded, "I wouldn't like it any other way."

Smirking, Yuusha threw another ball with a similar design into the air, releasing a muscular, four armed creature with light-blue skin. "It appears that Yuusha has sent forth Machamp! What can we expect from this matchup?" the announcer called.

The crowd roared eagerly as both combatants charged at each other, their attacks clashing amidst the glow cast by the stadium...

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 1-Expectations

**-Present day-**

The only sound that permeated the otherwise deafening silence of the room was the scritch-scratch of pencil on paper. The classroom was filled with students, heads buried in a test, while the teacher sat at the table, looking over a magazine with his feet propped on the table. "Done."

The teacher looked up at the source of the low, almost monotonous voice. A teenage boy with messy, brown hair that seemed to cover his eyes, although it was still recognizable that he was wearing oval-shaped glasses, placed his page on the table. "Alright then. Take your seat."

The boy nodded and sat down at his seat, then pulled out a book from the bag next to his seat, flipping it open and reading. A few more minutes passed by, as several other students went up to the desk and handed in their papers. Eventually, all of the students had finished, giving way to a resounding ring to be heard throughout the room and hallways. On cue, everyone began to stand up and collect their things, as the teacher settled his feet on the floor once again. "Alright everyone, you'll get your test results next week. Have a nice day."

The students began to file out of the room, as the brown-haired boy put his book up and began to walk out of the room. "Demitri. May I have a word with you?"

Upon hearing the teacher's comment, the boy, Demitri, looked around and asked lowly, "Yes sir?"

He approached the desk, as the teacher folded his hands together and asked, "How long have you been in this school?"

"8 years," Demitri replied.

The teacher nodded. "Can you tell me your grade average for the previous year?"

"I got an A average," the teen continued.

"And the year before that?"

"A average again."

"And the one before?"

"Straight As."

The teacher nodded in confirmation, then proceeded to ask, "You do know why you go to school, correct?"

"To use what I learn here to get a career, and leave my mark on society," Demitri answered, almost mechanically.

The teacher smiled slightly, then said with a chuckle, "Well, it's no wonder you're the brightest student here. But, what I'm curious to know is...why haven't you begun your own journey yet?"

Demitri furrowed his brow, then replied, "I'm not planning on becoming a Trainer. I'm going to become a scientist, to help everyone understand Pokemon more."

Nodding slightly, the teacher continued, "Listen, Demitri. I'm sure you know that almost every Trainer that has come from Pallet has gone on to become the best of the best."

Demitri nodded in understanding. "It would be a terrible waste if you didn't become a Trainer, and to become another of Pallet's elite. Especially given..."

"I know, my family has been generation after generation of Trainers," Demitri cut him off with a hint of distaste in his tone. "But...I just don't think that is me. I'm sorry."

The teacher heaved a sigh at this, then asked, "Are you certain? You haven't even tried, have you?"

Demitri rubbed the back of his head, and murmured uncertainly, "Well...no...but, do you really think that I'd be up to it?"

"I don't think so...I know so," his teacher answered. "With your knowledge and the skill passed down by your family, I'm certain that you'd become very great...maybe even as good as your mother. Or even your father."

Demitri had fallen silent, deep in thought. "Give it some thought," his teacher finished, looking back into his magazine.

The teen nodded and walked out of the room, thinking to himself, "A Trainer...I'm still not sure...I mean, I'm not really smart about that kind of thing, but..." Demitri finally walked out of the school building, and said aloud, "I guess I could give it a shot."

He walked away from the school, off towards his neighborhood; perhaps his mom could have some advice...though Demitri was fairly certain he'd already know what she'd say.


	2. Competition

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 2-Competition

Demitri continued his walk through the neighborhood, spectating all of the children playing on the sidewalk, some with Pokemon of their own. He sighed, coming to a specific brick house; on the front porch was a yellow fox-like creature with nine long tails sleeping. Once Demitri approached, it awakened and looked up at the teen. "Good girl," he murmured, petting it on the head while opening the door to the home. "Mom, I'm home."

He stepped inside, looking up at the stairwell in the doorway, then to the dining room on his right hand side. A woman with dark brown hair walked out from said entrance with a glass in her hand, a washcloth in the other, cleaning out it. "Have a nice day at school?"

"Yeah..." Demitri uttered rather unenthusiastically, stepping into the living room on the left hand side of the entrance and plopping down onto the couch.

His mother furrowed her brow in curiosity, and followed him into the room, setting the now clean glass on the table in front of them. "What's on your mind...?" she asked, sitting down next to him; the fox Pokemon sat down on its haunches at her feet.

Demitri looked over at his mom, and, figuring it useless to avoid the situation, asked, "You've always said that I should follow in the family footsteps, and become a Trainer, right?"

"Yes...and why're you bringing this up all of a sudden?" she asked, petting the fox's head and causing it to let out a low purr.

Demitri turned away slightly, then explained, "Well, my teacher said that it would be a shame that my intelligence was wasted by not becoming a Trainer..."

His mother tilted her head to one side. "Didn't you say you wanted to be a scientist?"

The teen nodded in confirmation, and continued, "I've just been thinking...what if I were to be a Trainer? Do you think I'd do well?"

A few moments passed, until the woman smiled and said, "You already know what I'd say..."

"Touche. Typical mom answer."

Demitri's mom fell silent for a few moments, before finally standing up and saying, "Well, just give it a little thought. Do what you think would be right."

With these words, she began walking back into the kitchen; noticing that she forgot the glass, the fox Pokemon picked it up in its mouth and followed the woman into the kitchen. "Remember, you can always visit the professor and ask his opinion," she added, taking the glass from the fox and petting it.

Demitri mulled these words over for a few moments. Finally, he stood up, stepping towards the door. "Mom, I'm going out."

The woman glanced at him from the kitchen, smiling and saying, "Well, that was quick."

"I know."

With this comment, Demitri walked out of the door, murmuring to himself, "Now, where is Oak's place..."

**-Meanwhile-**

"This is it, huh? Professor Oak's lab?"

A rather large building with a windmill at the topmost portion, perched on a large grassy hill was the subject of the current conversation. Two boys were currently walking up a staircase leading up the hill and to the building; the older, a pre-teen by appearance, had blonde hair and a blue jacket with jeans, while the other was much younger and shorter, had lighter brown hair, a white shirt, and shorts with a camouflage pattern. They approached the front door, and knocked. After a few moments, an elderly voice called from the inside, "I'm coming, I'm coming!"

Finally, the door was opened; on the other side stood an elderly man with graying hair a white labcoat underneath his red shirt and beige slacks. "Yes?"

The taller boy stepped forward, clearing his throat and adopting a confident smile. "We're here for a Pokemon? We were told you were the one to come to?" He reached into his pocket, unveiling a silver-colored card like object with an imprint of a circle-like object split down the middle by a bar on the side. "I'm going to become a Pokemon Trainer."

The old man smiled back, nodding. "Ah, yes...of course. Come in."

With this comment, the two boys walked inside, the trio walking down the hallway inside. "My name is Samuel Oak, one of the top authorities on Pokemon and all topics concerning them. You two are here to begin your journey as Trainers?"

"I am," the older blonde answered. "Which ones are available?"

The group finally entered another room, this one looking quite technological; a few computers and machines lined the walls, as well as a spherical table in the middle of the room where three orb-like devices sat. The group approached said table, examining the red and white colored balls. "Only three?"

"Well...yes," Oak replied, lifting a finger. "But there are many more for you to capture when you begin your journey."

The taller boy shrugged in response. "Well, yeah, I guess that's true...what are they?"

With this comment, the professor activated all of the devices, causing them to open and release three columns of light. The columns landed back on the table, soon taking the form of three rather different creatures. One was a teal quadrupedal dinosaur with a large green plant on its back, another was a bipedal orange lizard with a glowing flame on it's tail, and the third was a blue-skinned bipedal turtle. The smaller boy went starry eyed, saying in a wondrous tone, "Cool!"

"These are Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle," the professor explained, motioning to each as he said this. "Pick whichever one you like."

The taller boy nodded, and began walking around the table, rubbing his chin in thought. "Hm..."

The three Pokemon followed his gaze as he stepped about, the boy soon doing a full revolution around the table and ending back in front of them. "I think I'll take..."

As he was making his decision, the smaller boy had snuck up behind the Bulbasaur, and poked the plant on its back in curiosity. This immediately startled the reptile, caused it to shoot out a large cloud of yellow powder from the top of the bulbous plant. This caused Charmander and Squirtle to freak out as well and hop off of the table; Oak expertly rounded them up and backed away as well. "What did you do?"

The boys stepped away with an anxious expression, as the Bulbasaur shook itself, sending some of the powder floating to the floor. "What was that?" the smaller boy asked with a hint of fright.

"Stun Spore," the professor explained. "If you would have been caught in that, you wouldn't have been able to move around for a little while."

"Eh..." the older boy uttered, as if this were affecting his decision. "I don't think Bulbasaur is right for me..."

He approached the Squirtle, staring at the creature square in the eyes. A few moments passed, until the turtle withdrew into its shell, and stared back at the boy from inside. "Uh uh..." the boy murmured, shaking his head before turning to Charmander.

The lizard-like Pokemon stared back at him, even leaning forward to sniff the boy. Finally, the boy smirked again, and said, "This one. I want this one."

Oak put a hand to his chin. "Charmander, eh?"

"Definitely," the boy responded with a nod, turning back to the professor.

A nod from Oak, who proceeded to pick up the ball that the Charmander had emerged from. "Here's its Poke Ball..." The boy accepted the device as Oak handed six more smaller, yet similar devices, saying, "Here are some spare Poke Balls. You're aware of how they work, right?"

"Well, duh," the boy replied, rolling his eyes as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

The professor suppressed a sweatdrop from the boy's confidence, and continued, "Alright, from this point, your path is in your hands."

The boy nodded in response. "Alright, I get it."

With this comment, he began walking out, the smaller boy trotting along. "Just be careful out there!" Oak called.

The older boy waved a hand at this, the duo finally stepping out of the building. "So, what're you gonna do now, Zack?" the younger boy asked, turning to his companion.

The older boy, Zack, fished out the card from his jacket, looking it over. "Well...the logical thing to do would be to participate for the League. And to do that...first, I'm gonna get the 8 Gym badges from across Kanto."

"Yeah! I'm up for that!" the smaller boy cheered, pumping a fist into the air; the Charmander voiced its agreement by copying the motion.

Zack grinned confidently, stowing the card away as they walked down the stairs leading down the hill. "This ought to be a snap..."

As they reached the bottom of the steps, Zack glanced at a figure approaching from the side of his eye; none other than Demitri. The pre-teen turned to him, and remarked, "Oh, what do we have here? An up-and-coming Trainer?"

The teen cast the duo an uninterested glance, and responded "I don't know whether I'm really going to be a Trainer yet."

"Well, you should probably stop where you are if you're even considering it," Zack replied, jerking a thumb to his chest with a cocky expression. "'Cause you're looking at the future Pokemon Champion!"

Demitri simply stared at the boy, not deterred in the least by his confidence. He then cast a glance at the Charmander standing next to the boy; it looked back up at him, the teen retaining an icy stare. Charamander stepped behind Zack in apprehension, as its master folded his arms and continued, "Well, if you're really going to go for it, then I wish you luck, because you're gonna need it."

With this comment, Zack began walking off, his Charmander trotting behind. The younger boy stuck his tongue out at Demitri before running along after them, the teen staring after them blankly. "If that's my competition...this might actually be a little easier than I thought," he mumbled absent-mindedly.


	3. Oak's Favor

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 3-Oak's Favor

After getting over the confusion of what had just happened, Demitri began stepping up the stairs to the top of the hill. He approached the door, tapping lightly on it and prompting a voice on the other side to call back, "Just one second!"

After a few seconds of waiting, the same elderly professor answered the door. "Yes?"

"Hello. My name is Demitri Douniiru," the teen began in a rather polite fashion, even giving a momentary bow. "May I speak with Professor Oak?"

The professor thought this over for a moment, looking Demitri over with a curious expression. "Demitri...Douniiru, you said?"

This comment visibly irritated Demitri, who mumbled with a slight hint of annoyance, "That's right..."

"So, you're the son of Keikoku and Yuusha Douniiru?" the elderly man asked, earning another slight nod from Demitri. "Ah, of course! How could I have not been able to see it?" the man asked, managing a smile and chuckle. "Yes, I am Professor Oak. Come in, come in!"

The teen took the invitation, stepping inside while Oak closed the door behind him. "To what do I owe this visit?"

"Well...you're one of the leading officials on Pokemon, right?" Demitri asked, glancing at Oak.

The elderly professor nodded. "You seek my guidance?"

"Yes," Demitri responded with a nod. "I've always wanted to become a Pokemon researcher, so I've spent most of my time trying to learn as much about Pokemon as I could."

The duo had began walking down the hallway during this conversation, Oak glancing back at Demitri and asking curiously, "Are you having doubts about that?"

"Well, it's not that," Demitri remarked, looking away slightly. "I was just curious about becoming a Pokemon Trainer."

This prompted a chuckle from the old professor, who added, "Like your parents?" Demitri grunted at this comment, though this didn't stop Oak from continuing. "Well, I wouldn't doubt it if you were just as good as them. Your family's been avid battlers for generations. It's in your blood."

"Yes, I know," Demitri mumbled flatly, glancing at Professor Oak as they entered another room, this one being the same mechanical room Zack had received his Charmander in. "I just wanted to get your expert opinion." He looked away slightly, running a hand down one of the machines. "I want to be a scientist...but being a Trainer sounds so intriguing..."

The professor nodded at this, stepping towards a nearby coffee maker as it beeped. "Sounds like you're torn. And you thought that I could help?"

Demitri nodded in response as Oak poured himself a cup of the warm, brown liquid. "Nearly every person has had an interaction with Pokemon at one point in their life, and so the question usually arises about being a Trainer."

The professor blew slightly on the cup before sitting down in one of the nearby chairs. "You know, I used to be a great Trainer myself." He chuckled, taking a sip of the beverage. "But, old age got in the way, and now I spend my time in my lab, doing what most people know me for now."

Demitri continued to listen respectively and attentively as Professor Oak set the mug down. "I think it would be wonderful if you became a Trainer, but it would also be great if you were a scientist too. What's stopping you from being both?"

It was pretty obvious that this had never passed through Demitri's mind before. "Both?"

The professor nodded in response, folding his hands together. "Just take things one step at a time, and you'll figure it out eventually."

Demitri had fallen silent, looking down slightly. "One step at a time..."

Oak took another sip of his coffee, Demitri finally looking up. "Alright, I think I can work with that." He looked out of one of the nearby windows. "On such a grand journey, opportunities are bound to arise. I'm going to become a Pokemon Trainer. And maybe, while I'm traveling, I can find out more about other paths I can take; not just research."

The elder professor lowered his mug, smiling with a reassuring nod. "Yes, very wise...I didn't expect anything less. So, you will need to choose a starting Pokemon?"

Demitri nodded, in response, both figures' glances turning to the nearby table, where the two Poke Balls containing the Pokemon Zack hadn't chosen sat. "Aren't...there supposed to be three?"

"Well, yes..." Oak responded, closing his eyes and looking down. "But someone came by here not long before you arrived and took the other one."

The image of Zack and his younger companion went through Demitri's head. "Right..." He let out a slight sigh. "I don't exactly feel content with choosing when it's not a complete set. When does the next batch of starters come in?"

Before the professor could explain, a low beeping was heard from behind, prompting Demitri to look at the computer sitting at the desk Oak was currently situated in. He turned about in his swivel chair, pulling up the screen and answering a phone attached to one side. "Hello? Yes. Mhm...oh? That's great!"

Demitri furrowed an eyebrow in thought, Oak continuing to talk. "Oh...I can't head all the way over there, I'm too busy..."

Against his better judgement, Demitri spoke. "What's wrong?"

The professor turned around to the teen, and explained, "I have a package waiting for me in Viridian City. I'd go fetch it myself, but I have too much work to attend to here..." He sighed slightly. "It'll take a day, but perhaps I can have them deliver it here themse-"

"Viridian's not that far off," Demitri remarked, looking up. "Why don't I get it for you?"

The professor glanced at him in surprise. "Are you sure? The route connecting the two towns is crawling with wild Pokemon..."

"I can manage," Demitri responded, waving a hand around.

Oak had silent, a low mumbling being heard from the receiver. He glanced at it, and continued, "Yes, I'm still here. I'll be sending someone else to pick it up for me, expect him in a little bit. Thank you."

Oak hung up the receiver at this, glancing at Demitri with a nod. "Just head to the research facility there and tell them I sent you. Be careful, alright?"

"Don't worry," Demitri responded with a nod. "I'll be just fine." After bidding the professor farewell, Demitri exited the building, headed down the hill. At first, he considered alerting his mom as to where he was going, but decided against it; he wouldn't be gone too long.

Within minutes, Demitri found himself in a much more natural setting, walking along a worn dirt path, surrounded on all sides by fresh, green fields and an occasional tree. Demitri would occasionally hear a light flapping of wings or the shifting of grass around as wild Pokemon scampered about, paying the teen no heed. He looked around, almost dozing off while in midstep. He was interrupted by a rather loud shouting sound, prompting Demitri to look around. "Huh?"

He seen located the source, coming from a few nearby trees. The teen stepped forward slightly, noticing a crowd of purple rat-like Pokemon surrounding two figures. One was a little girl, probably eight years old, wearing a white dress and small shorts with a pink stripe around the waist; this stripe being attached to a phanny pack perched behind her. Standing in front of the girl was a peach-colored cat-like Pokemon, claws extended and what looked like a coin sticking out of its forehead. "What's going on?"

The girl and cat glanced at Demitri, the rats taking notice of him and surrounding him as well, forcing him to leap to the girl's side to avoid being mobbed. "What did you do to get these things mad at you?" he asked with a slight hint of irritation. "Rattata are normally pretty docile!"

The girl cast him a retaliatory glance, and responded, "Me and Meowth were just training, they must've gotten all crazy and stuff!"

"Well, I can't really help you in this situation, kid," Demitri mumbled flatly. "I don't have any Pokemon."

"What?" she asked, the cat Pokemon glancing at him with a confused expression. "What are you even doing here then?"

"Fetching a package for someone," Demitri responded with a surprisingly casual tone, glancing over at the rats still surrounding them.

The girl sighed irritably at the teen, looking back at their opponents. "Now what do we do?"

"Battle them?" Demitri responded as-a-matter-of-factly, glancing at the girl slightly.

She shot him a rather incredulous look, and retorted, "Do you see how many of them there are?"

"You don't have any other Pokemon?" Demitri inquired, finding his attention a little more on arguing with the girl than their current predicament.

The girl shook her head, the two exchanging a momentary glance. "Follow my lead," he uttered, the girl blinking at him in confusion.

The next thing both knew, they were dashing through the crowd, accidentally kicking a few of the rats awat and leaving behind a rather comical trail of dust. "This is your plan?" the girl asked inredulously, Meowth clinging to her with a panicked expression.

"You have a better idea?" Demitri retorted, panting slightly as they dashed off, leaving the dazed and confused rats to stare after them.


	4. Little Girls, Gyms, and Robotic Pokemon

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 4-Little Girls, Gyms, and Robotic Pokemon

Soon enough, Viridian City was within walking distance, a large sign reading "Viridian City Ahead". Currently leaning on this post was Demitri, panting heavily while the girl and her Meowth lay sprawled on the ground next to him. "Now I see...the importance of physical education..."

The little girl continued to pant heavily, finally being helped pulled into a sitting position by her Meowth. "I'd say...thanks for the help...but I probably coulda done that myself..."

"And why didn't you...?" Demitri panted, leaning away from the post and pulling his glasses off to wipe the sweat off of them with a handkerchief produced from his school uniform.

"I didn't think of it..." she responded, finally standing up and brushing the dirt off of her. She finally turned towards Demitri, saying, "My name's Anne."

Demitri glanced at the girl, blinking for a moment. "Uh...okay...I'm Demitri."

The duo shook hands, Anne slowly retracting hers upon noticing the sweat accumularing from Demitri. "Ew." She began wiping the smelly moisture off onto the post they were standing next to, then asked, "So, what are you doing in Viridian if you don't have any Pokemon?"

After staring at the girl's unusual display, Demitri explained, "I'm running an errand for Professor Oak."

"Oohh, really?" she asked in curiosity, blinking slightly. "So you must be from Pallet." Demitri nodded, Anne stretching and turning towards Viridian. "Cool, cool...so, anyway, I'd better head off to the Pokemon Center, so I can resume my training!"

Anne rushed off at this, her Meowth trailing after her. "Be careful out there next time!" Demitri called back, though this comment went seemingly on deaf ears. "Damn kids..." Demitri groaned, running a hand through his messy hair. "Anyway..."

The teen began walking into the city, looking around the somewhat small city with a curious expression; he had purchased a bottle of water to help him cool down from his recent physical exertion. "Alright, the Viridian City Research Center..."

Demitri's train of thought was interrupted when he passed by another path, noticing a crowd having gathered in front of a building, several loud shouts and complaints heard. Furrowing his brow in thought, Demitri approached, glancing at the building; the top read "Viridian City Pokemon Gym". Underneath that, however, was a sticker with the words "Closed until further notice".

"Why? Why does it have to be closed?" Demitri blinked, glancing towards the front of the crowd; sure enough, he soon saw Zack and the little boy that accompanied him standing in front of the doors, trying to push it open, but with little luck.

Demitri raised an eyebrow and stepped forward, asking, "What's with the big commotion?"

Those in the crowd turned around to Demitri, several giving him incredulous looks. "You wouldn't understand..." the little boy responded, looking down in disappointment and leaning his head on the door.

Zack turned towards Demitri, folding his arms with a frown. "For your information, the big commotion is that the Viridian Gym is closed! I've never heard of a Gym being closed in my entire life!"

Demitri rolled his eyes at this comment, sighing. "So one Gym's closed. Just go find another one."

"You don't understand..." Zack responded, narrowing his gaze and stepping forward. "There are only 8 Gyms in all of Kanto, and you need a badge from each of them to participate in the Indigo League!"

"Really..." Demitri mumbled lowly, narrowing his gaze to match Zack's. "Are you sure it won't open later? Like, after a certain amount of time that could be spent getting these other seven badges?"

Zack opened his mouth to complain, but cut himself short, looking away slightly and rubbing his chin in thought. "Hmm...you may be right..."

With this comment, Zack turned towards the other children gathered around the Gym, and called, "We'll come here later. For now, we should head for the next available Gym! To Pewter City!"

The crowd let out a cheer, charging off through the town and leaving a rather bewildered Demitri behind. He sighed once again, mumbling, "Damn kids..." He unscrewed the cap to his water bottle and took another sip, continuing his trek through the city before arriving at a new building, a sign reading "Viridian City Research Center".

Demitri proceeded to walk into the door, approaching the receptionist on the other side. "Excuse me..." She looked up at him with a slight bored expression. "I'm here to pick up a package for Professor Oak." The receptionist jerked her head to the side, motioning to another part of the desk, where a somewhat small box, only about a foot long in all of its measurements, was waiting. Demitri approached it, looking at the top; indeed, it was addressed to the professor. "Thank you," Demitri nodded, scooping up the box in his hands and leaving the building.

Soon enough, Demitri had found his way out of Viridian City, glancing up at the sky; it was beginning to glow a faint orange color, signifying that the sun was close to setting. "It's almost nighttime...I'd better hurry up..."

Demitri picked up the pace once again, keeping himself at a more moderate speed given his most recent marathon run with Anne. He continued to jog for a few minutes, before starting to tire out again and return to walking; during this time, he had looked down at the box he was carrying, now a tad curious. What exactly was he transporting? Demitri had decided to ignore it for the most part, but eventually, curiosity had began eating away at him like sped up erosion, leaving his mind to wander as he tried to pick up the noises the package made when he moved it about. It didn't sound like there was anything terribly large in there...although Demitri did his best to refrain from satiating his curiosity, he had finally began attempting to pry the tape off; surely the professor wouldn't mind if he snuck a single peek. He opened the top of the box, finding himself staring at a familiar red and white metallic ball sitting in a velvet cushioning. "A Poke Ball?"

The teen slowly scooped up the device, holding it up to the dwindling sun so he could get a good look at it; it was obviously new and barely used, its coating shining slightly. Before Demitri could put the Ball back in, a rather loud cawing noise caused the startled teen to jump slightly, the Ball flying from his hand. "Gah!"

The Poke Ball bounced to the ground with a low "clink", the sudden action causing it to burst open and release a pillar of light. Demitri looked away slightly from the light, very slowly looking back once the faint shimmering had halted. What he was granted was a rather unusual sight; it seemed to be some sort of vaguely robotic creature, with a bird-like blocky body, triangular feet, a pointed triangular head forming a dull beak, and a long, pointed, pyramid-like tail. It was colored primarily pink, with its feet, tail, chest, and beak colored light blue. The robotic Pokemon shivered about before looking up at Demitri, its blank expression meeting his surprised one. "Uuhh..."

Demitri bent down on his knees to the robotic creature, which continued to stare at him for a few moments until the teen lifted a hand up. "This is...a Pokemon."

He set a hand on the robot's head, slowly feeling its cold, hard body all over and causing it to shiver, letting out a few loud beeps and buzzes. "What were you called again...?" Demitri thought this over before snapping. "Ah, yes. Porygon, first man-made Pokemon."

Demitri took his hands off of Porygon before setting one back on its head, petting the Normal-type. "You know, you actually look kinda funny for a Pokemon...but then again, it's man's first try, I guess..."

Porygon continued to examine Demitri curiously, its blank eyes seemingly boring through him. The teen finally scooped up the dropped Poke Ball, dusting it off and mumbling, "Well, I guess I'd better put you back in your ball...don't want Oak having a fit because I brought you out..."

With this comment, Demitri stood up, pointing the Ball at Porygon. "Return, Porygon." With this vocal command, a red beam of light was shot from the button in the middle, striking Porygon and causing it to wince slightly as the beam of light yanked it back inside. Demitri set the Ball back into the box, murmuring, "Now, to get back to-"

The teen was interrupted by a low rumbling noise, the gorund vibrating slightly. Demitri looked down, mumbling flatly, "That doesn't sound good..."

Demitri soon noticed the source of the noise; a stampede of purple rat Pokemon charging forward, several of them looking rather frightened. Demitri staggered back slightly, the rats dashing underneath him; their density and speed caused Demitri to quickly fall of balance losing his grip on the box and causing the Ball to fly out. "Gah!" The teen grunted, quickly managing to snatch the Ball out of the air, though the box was lost amongst the crowd. Soon, the rats had left, allowing the dirtied and coughing Demitri to stand up. "Well...I hope he didn't need the box too..." Demitri groaned lowly, turning around. "GAH!"

Demitri's eyes widened, and he quickly stepped back upon finding himself staring off with a somewhat large brown-feathered bird, a red crest sticking from its head and a very long, intimidating beak extending form its head. "Nice Fearow...good Fearow..." Demitri mumbled lowly, taking a few anxious steps back.

The large Fearow abruptly let out a loud cawing sound, flapping its wings and prompting a panicked Demitri to quickly begin running off. He didn't get very far before the Fearow shot after him, extending its claws and grabbing a hold of the teen. "Gah!" Demitri attempted to struggle for a moment, however, he quickly looke dback down and decided against it upon seeing how high they had climbed within a short time. He could do nothing but dangle helplessly as the Fearow dragged him off through the sky...

**-Meanwhile-**

"Alright, Jigglypuff! Do another Pound attack!"

With this command, the incoming bird-like Pokemon was smacked into a tree by a pink puffball-like Pokemon, causing it to sink to the ground, unconscious. The pink ball, which had a tuft of hair on its forehead, a pair of triangular ears, wide blue eyes, and a pair of stubby arms and legs, fluttered backwards, landing in front of Anne and her Meowth. The girl pumped a fist into the air, cheering, "Yes! Victory solo!"

With this comment, the girl removed a microphone from her bag and began wailing into it, Jigglypuff mimicking her motions as Meowth watched from a distance. "Alright, I think we've trained enough for today!" Anne proclaimed, stowing the mic away.

Jigglypuff let out a small sigh and slouched down slightly, Meowth approaching. "Let's get back to Viridian so we can have a juice box!" Anne exclaimed, beginning to walk off with the duo trailing behind her. "Or maybe even ice cream!"

Both Pokemon sounded their approval, following their Trainer. Before they could get very far, a low rumbling reach their ears. The trio looked around in confusion, noticing a crowd of Pokemon dashing towards them; a flock of familiar purple rats. Anne blinked in surprise, only to grin confidently. "Well then, looks like we have time for one last performance!" She proceeded to point forward, commanding, "Now Jigglypuff, Sing!"

With this command, Jigglypuff took a breath, its body expanding slightly. The rats continued to dash, only for the Jigglypuff to abruptly let out a rather soothing sound, distorting the air in front of it slightly and causing the rats to look up slightly. Their eyes had began noticeably drooping, their movements more and more uncoordinated, before they finally began collapsing in a heap in front of Anne and her Pokemon, all asleep. "Alright!" the girl cheered, giving off a victory sign. "Another win for Jigglypuff!"

Jigglypuff let out a cheer, pumping one of its hands into the air as Meowth approached the herd of sleeping rats, sniffing slightly. It quickly noticed one of the rats holding a somewhat tattered box in its teeth, prompting the Meowth to begin mewing loudly to try and get Anne's attention. The girl and Jigglypuff looked around, approaching and scooping up the box. "Looks like they picked up some trash..."

Anne's attention soon went to the delivery address; "Professor Oak's Pokemon Research Lab, Pallet Town". "Professor Oak's lab..." the girl mused, looking up slightly. "I feel like that's important somehow..."

"I'm running an errand for Professor Oak."

Anne blinked in surprise, looking down at her two Pokemon. "This must be what that guy was trying to deliver!"

Meowth sounded its approval, Anne looking around curiously. "But...where is he?" Upon not seeing Demitri anywhere, not even approaching from where the rats stormed forward, Anne suggested, "Maybe he got lost?"

Both Pokemon shrugged slightly, Anne folding her arms in thought. "Hm...maybe he just tossed out the box? Curiosity musta gotten the better of him."

The girl grabbed her head with a slight groan, mumbling, "Augh, now I wanna know what happened! Stupid curiosity!" she turned to Meowth and Jigglypuff, setting her hands on her hips, and exclaimed, "Alright you two, we're gonna go to Professor Oak's lab and get to the bottom of this!"

Meowth and Jigglypuff glanced at each other, Anne twirling around on her heel and pointing forward, shouting, "Alright! Let's goooo!"


	5. Narrow Escape

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 5-Narrow Escape

Professor Oak currently sat back in his lab, leaning back in his chair while suckling from a cup of what seemed to be noodles. after gulping them down, he took a breath, glancing at the nearby clock. "Hm...Demitri should be back by now..."

Before Oak could contemplate this any further, the sound of a doorbell being rung reached his ears. The elderly man looked around, setting the empty cup in the trash bin. He approached the front door, expecting Demitri to be on the other side. However, the teen was not there. "Excuse me."

Oak looked down, finding a certain brown hair girl standing on the other side, a Meowth and Jigglypuff at her side. "My name's Anne. May I please speak to Professor Oak?"

"That's me," Oak responded with a nod. "May I help you?"

With this comment, Anne reached into her pack, pulling out the crumpled delivery box, and remarked, "I think your delivery boy had a little trouble with his return."

The professor blinked in surprise, taking the box form her and looking it over; it was indeed addressed to him. "What? Where is he?"

Anne shrugged at this, murmuring, "I dunno...I found this among a group of Rattata."

Oak put a hand to his chin in thought. "Oh...oh dear...this is around the time that Fearow come out to hunt, which means..."

The professor's eyes widened in realization, and he gasped, "He must've been captured by a Fearow!"

Anne placed her hands to her mouth in shock, gasping. "Oh no! What do we do?"

"Well, we need to find him, of course!" Oak responded urgently, stepping out and glancing at Anne. "We have to be quick, lest his captor gets too far away!"

The professor began walking off, Anne glancing at her two Pokemon and murmuring blankly, "Lest?"

-**Meanwhile-**

Demitri continued to dangle for several minutes; though his arms were getting pretty sore from having the Fearow's claws digging into them. He let out a low groan, finally noticing something coming into view. He looked up, noticing the large bird coming towards a cliff. "Fearow make their nests on the sides of cliffs..." Demitri commented to himself blankly, noticing the aforementioned nest of branches and down coming into view.

The teen was abruptly dropped into the nest, landing in a pile of feathers and causing him to sneeze slightly. He looked up slightly after pushing them away, quickly noticing a group of smaller, red birds with brown-colored heads. Demitri narrowed his gaze slightly, murmuring, "Spearow..."

At this time, the Fearow had landed on the edge of the nest, cawing to its babies and causing them to squawk back. Demitri looked at the Fearow blankly, mumbling, "Y-you've got to be kidding me. Do I LOOK like bird feed to you?"

The Fearow simply stared back at him blankly, Demitri looking back at the Spearow as they hopped towards him. "This cannot end well..." the teen mumbled, stepping back slightly and backing into the nest wall. His train of thought was interrupted when his mind trailed to his still clenched fist, which had been carrying Porygon's Poke Ball the entire time. He stared at it for a moment, sighing and mumbling, "Well...not like I have too much to lose..."

With no other real options, Demitri tossed the Ball forward, suddenly causing it to burst open. A pillar of light emerged from the opening, soon taking the form of Porygon, who shivered to remove the sparkles of light from it. "Alright Porygon," Demitri remarked, the Virtual Pokemon glancing at him. "I'm not your actual Trainer, but if we want to avoid ending up as Spearow droppings, you've got to listen to me."

**Battle Situation**  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Wild Fearow, Wild Spearow x3 **  
**Location: Route 22 **  
**Wild Pokemon Battle**

Porygon blinked slightly, glancing around at the Spearow, who had been momentaily stunned by the flash of light from the Poke Ball. They finally charged forward, Demitri pointing forward and commanding, "Porygon, use Tackle!"

Wasting no time, Porygon charged forward, smashing into one of the Spearow and sending it toppling backwards, and forcing the other two Spearow to leap to the side slightly in shock. Both abruptly squawked angrily, charging towards Demitri and Porygon again, both hopping to the sides and causing the two Spearows to slam into the side of the next, causing it to tilt slightly. The Fearow cawed loudly and fluttered its wings about, trying to steady the nest and Demitri looked at both Spearow, one of which had gotten its beak stuck in the side of the nest. The other, however, had turned towards Demitri once again, the teen blinking. porygon glanced at the teen, who abruptly called, "Porygon, Psybeam!"

With this command, the edge of Porygon's beak began glowing, gathering a rainbow colored energy in it. Right before the Spearow could attack, Porygon had zapped the bird with the colorful beam of psychic energy, knocking it to the ground. Demitri breathed a sigh of relief, noticing all three of the birds either knocked out or incapacitated. "Whew...that was too close..." Demitri sighed.

The teen was, however, interrupted by a loud cawing sound, taking note of the Fearow now staring at the scene with an angry expression, obviously none too happy about its children being attacked. Demitri's eyes widened as the Fearow began approaching, the teen quickly ordering, "Porygon, Psybeam!"

The Normal-type quickly let loose a slew of rainbow blasts, most of which the Fearow avoided. Some of them impacted with little effect, the bird cawing angrily and diving towards them again. Demitri proceeded to quickly pull the Porygon out of the way before it could be hit, resulting in the Fearow smacking face-first into the cliff wall. Both Demitri and Porygon winced, the teen mumbling, "That had to hurt..."

Demitri and Porygon's attention went to the now slightly trembling cliff wall, looking up slightly to see that the battle had disturbed the wall, some rocks now starting to plummet downwards. "That's not good...!" Demitri panicked.

With this comment, Demitri began trying to clamber out of the nest, managing to get a hold of the rock wall as some boulders began dropping down, Porygon abruptly levitating out of the way to avoid being smacked by the rocks. The boulders impacted with the nest, knocking it, and the bird Pokemon inside, toppling down the cliff wall. Demitri winced slightly, mumbling, "I stand corrected. THAT had to hurt."

Porygon let out a beep in confirmation, Demitri glancing at it as it flew around him, the teen trying his best to get down without losing his grip. The teen finally glanced at Porygon blankly, mumbling, "Oh, yeah...forgot you could fly..." He paused for a moemnt, then asked, "Well then, do you think you could help me get back down?"

The Virtual Pokemon proceeded to levitate forward, inviting Demitri to take a hold. The teen gingerly reached his hand out, finally managing to take a hold of Porygon with both hands. The robotic Pokemon made a small descent and a slightly strained beep, but managed to keep them both airborne long enough for the ground to come into view. Demitri finally managed to drop safely to the ground, Porygon alighting with a rather tired expression. Demitri glanced at the Virtual Pokemon and murmured, "Hm...best not try that again any time soon..."

The teen managed to heft up the surprisingly bulky Pokemon, walking through the underbrush for a while, occasionally pushing some branches out of the way in an attempt to get back on the trail. He finally managed to step onto a more definable path, panting slightly. "Alright, now we just need to find a sign..."

With a low beep, Porygon tilted its head around, motioning to a rather conveniently placed sign. On the top read "Route 22", with an arrow pointing to the right, the words "Viridian City" directly next to it. "There we are," the teen remarked, turning towards the aforementioned arrow and beginning to walk off.

**-Meanwhile-**

"Do we have time for this?" Oak let out a slight sigh as Anne continued to knock away several Pokemon with her Meowth and Jigglypuff, having spent quite a bit of time now battling wild Pokemon as opposed to actually looking for Demitri.

"Of course we do!" the girl responded cheerily. "There's always time for training!"

Oak sighed slightly as Meowth smacked away another bird, murmuring, "I don't know about you, but I'm looking for Demitri. If you'll excuse me..."

With this comment, Oak began walking off, Anne looking after him and waving her hand about. "Have fun, old man!"

The professor mumbled something under his breath with a sigh, musing, "Most Fearow in this area make their nests in Route 22, so Viridian is my best bet..."

**-Meanwhile-**

Demitri soon found himself back outside the gates of Viridian, looking around and murmuring, "Finally...back in civilization." At this time, Porygon abruptly levitated out of Demitri's arms, shivering itself off. The teen glanced at it, asking, "You all rested up?"

The Normal-type beeped in confirmation, Demitri and Porygon beginning to enter the gates. "Alright, we'd best get-"

"Not so fast!" Demitri and Porygon jumped slightly, looking around to the source of the voice; two familiar figures had began approaching, the blonde-haired boy and his younger partner from before. "What're you doing here?"

"I could be asking you the same thing," Demitri responded blankly, folding his arms slightly. "Weren't you headed for Pewter City?"

The boy, Zack, waved his hand about. "Ah, it was getting late, and traversing such a place like Viridian Forest is pretty dangerous at night."

Demitri fell silent. "Riiiiiight..." He began slowly turning around and walking off somewhat slowly, Porygon levitating after him. "Anyway, I'm kinda busy at the moment, so-"

"Hey!" Zack called again, stepping forward with a slight frown, then folding his arms. "I see you've gotten yourself a Pokemon."

Demitri and Porygon glanced at each other, the former responding plainly, "This isn't mine, I'm-"

"Unfortunately for you, I've been practicing," Zack responded confidently, rubbing his fist along his jacket with a cocky smirk. "And now, you are going to taste defeat at my hands!"

A vein popped form Demitri's head, the teen grunting, "Look, I don't want trouble, so if you'll just let me go..."

Zack, however, wasn't as phased, snickering to himself. "Aw, what's the matter? You scared?" He turned to the little boy accompanying him, and remarked, "Look, Hayden! We got ourselves a scaredy cat!"

The little boy, Hayden, began laughing at this, glancing at Demitri as the teen mumbled, "I really don't want to fight you..."

"...because you know you'll lose if you do!" Zack explained triumphantly.

Demitri sighed irritably, turning away and mumbling, "Come on, Porygon...let's not waste our time on these..."

Instead, however, Porygon had levitated in front of Demitri with a few beeps, the teen blinking as the Virtual Pokemon glanced back at Zack. "You...want to battle?"

Porygon beeped in confirmation, Zack pointing forward and shouting, "A challenge it is, then! Prepare to be dazzled by my masterful battling technique!"

Zack pulled out a Poke Ball at this, Demitri sighing and stepping towards him slightly. "If you truly insist, I guess I'll play with you for a little while...I don't think the professor will like the fact that I used his Pokemon, though..."


	6. First Battle: vs Zack

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 6-First Battle: vs. Zack

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Pkmn Trainer Zack **  
**Location: Viridian City **  
**Single Battle**

"Let's go!" Zack shouted, revealing a Poke Ball and tossing it into the air. The spherical device opened, letting out a column of light that soon formed into a small, orange-colored lizard with a flame at the end of its tail. Demitri recognized it as the Charmander Professor Oak had given him. "And you're gonna use that...thing?" Zack asked, folding his arms and glancing at Porygon.

The Virtual Pokemon resulted with a rather angry beep, levitating forward. Demitri shifted the glasses on his face, then responded, "Don't think you're at an advantage just because I've never been in a Pokemon battle before. You got your Pokemon JUST today."

Zack motioned forward. "That much doesn't matter! Charmander, Scratch!"

With this command, Charmander began dashing towards Porygon, claws extended. It made a swipe for the robotic Pokemon, who hastily leaned back to avoid being sliced. "Porygon, retaliate with Tackle!" Demitri called.

Porygon expertly lunged forward once Charmander's attack had passed, headbutting it and sending the lizard toppling backwards, landing on its back. It didn't stay down for long and quickly hopped back to its feet, Porygon levitating back up and shaking its head around. Zack furrowed his brow. "Lucky shot...Ember, Charmander!"

The Fire-type squeaked, taking a breath before shooting a hail of red, flaming darts towards Porygon. It was unable to avoid fast enough, and was nailed directly, pinned to a streetlight for several moments before sliding back down. Demitri let out a slight gasp before Porygon levitated back up, shaking itself around again. "It takes two to tango in a ranged battle...Porygon, Psybeam!"

After completely recovering form the assault, Porygon shot a beam of rainbow-colored psychic energy towards Charmander, who avoided the first few shots; however, the attacks finally managed to trip it up, resulting in the lizard landing flat on its face. Demitri motioned forward, calling, "Quick, while it's down! Tackle!"

With this command, Porygon charged forward, swooping down at Charmander and sending it toppling backwards, slumping down in front of Zack. The boy looked down at it with a grunt, Hayden's eyes widening. "C'mon, Charmander! We can't let him win!"

Charmander slowly staggered to its feet, swaying from side to side slightly as Demitri folded his arms. "Seems to me like you're at the end of your rope."

Zack growled at this, clenching his fists. "Don't get arrogant just yet! We still have quite a lot of fight left in us!" He punched forward, shouting, "Charmander, give 'em a dose of Smokescreen!"

The Fire-type obeyed, taking a breath and abruptly exhaling a large, billowing cloud of smoke that abruptly shrouded the entire field, hiding Zack and Charmander from view. Demitri covered his mouth with a grunt, mumbling, "Gah...where'd he go...?"

Porygon looked around frantically, just in time for Charmander to abruptly leap out, lashing at Porygon with its claws and sending it staggering back. The robotic Pokemon turned around, only for Charmander to vanish in the smoke once again, unleashing an Ember from Porygon's side that knocked it backwards slightly. Demitri gritted his teeth lowly, mumbling, "We can't fight like this...Porygon, get out of there!"

The Normal-type finally emerged, though it looked slightly bruised from Charmander's repeated assaults. Zack smirked, shouting, "One more Ember, Charmander!"

Charmander abruptly stepped out of the smoke, shooting out several embers towards Porygon, who attempted to turn around to counter, only to be blasted back, landing at Demitri's feet. The teen looked down in shock, mumbling, "Porygon!"

The smoke finally began clearing, Charmander revealed in the middle, looking ready for a battle. Zack folded his arms, murmuring, "Had enough yet? I won't consider you a coward if you back out now."

Demitri grunted slightly, looking down at Porygon, who continued to stare back up at him, the duo continuing this for several moment. Finally, the Virtual Pokemon nodded, Demitri looking up. "We're not backing out just yet. You haven't won."

With this comment, Zack shrugged. "Eh, don't blame me when you end up getting hurt..."

"It won't be me, or Porygon getting hurt," Demitri responded, motioning forwatd. "Porygon, Conversion 2, now!"

Zack blinked slightly, Porygon closing its eyes as a faint light began shrouding it. "What the...?" finally, the light seem to close in on Porygon, encompassing its body before finally disappearing, revealing that Porygon's body was now brown, with a rather rugged texture. Zack furrowed his brow, then mumbled, "And what was that supposed to do?"

"You'll see," Demitri responded, folding his arms. "Porygon, Psybeam!"

Porygon obeyed, firing off a blast of rainbow energy towards Charmander, who once again expertly avoided. "Being spunky alone won't win you any battles," Zack responded, pointing forward. "Ember, Charmander!"

The lizard abruptly fired off another ember spray from its mouth, impacting Porygon directly. However, as opposed to the previous ffective attacks, this one barely caused Porygon to flinch, the Virtual Pokemon looking back up with just as determined an expression. Zack blinked at this, grunting, "Did my attack just get...weaker?"

"Not exactly," Demitri explained, waggling a finger at him. "Conversion 2 is a special attack that allows Porygon to change its type, depending on the one you used last. And the move you used was Ember, if I'm correct?"

"Yeah, so?" Zack grunted.

"So...when I use Conversion 2, Porygon changes into a type that is resistant to the move you used last, in this case, Ember. And, lucky me, Porygon became the Rock type, which resists Fire type moves like Ember," Demitri finished, Porygon letting out a victorious beep.

Zack grunted, shouting, "Type disadvantages won't stop me! Charmander, Scratch!"

The lizard abruptly dashed forward, taking several swipes at Porygon, who took all of the attacks head-on. However, its now rocky body made the attacks have little effect, and it remained sturdy. Demitri managed a slight smirk, then murmured, "Time to finish this. Psybeam!"

Charmander didn't have enough time to react before receiving a Psybeam at point-blank range, sending it flying backwards and crashing into Hayde, knocking both to the ground. "Charmander!" Zack shouted, bending down to the now unconscious Fire-type.

Demitri shifted his glasses about, Porygon letting out a victorious beep. "Looks like I win."

Almost as soon as he said this, a cheer went up from around them; both combatants blinked in shock, looking around to find that a small crowd had gathered to watch the battle. Demitri turned red-faced, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment before waving sheepishly to the crowd. Porygon levitated to Demitri's side with another victorious beep, Zack looking at the duo with a grunt. "Demitri! There you are!"

The teen jumped slightly in shock, turning around to find Professor Oak approaching. He held up his hands, stammering, "P-professor! L-look, I know I used Porygon without your permission but-"

"That was incredible!" the professor remarked, apparently not even paying attention to the apology. "And that was your first time ever battling?"

Demitri fell silent for a moment, lowering his hands with a slight shrug. "W-well, yeah, but when in a tight spot you, experience gained outside of the field of battle kinda helps."

Oak nodded, smiling. "Well, i must say I'm impressed! You truly are your parents' child!"

The teen looked away slightly, mumbling blankly, "Well, I don't know about THAT..."

"Regardless, we'd better get back to my lab," Oak continued, glancing at Porygon, then at Demitri.

The teen and Pokemon looked at each other, then collectively exchanged a sigh. "You have NO idea..."

The trio turned to walk off, only to be interrupted. "Hey!" Demitri and Oak turned around, finding Zack standing up with Charmander in his arms, Hayden slowly staggering to his feet. "Don't think you've won! I'll be back!"

"Of course you will," Demitri murmured, waving his hand around with a casual expression. Zack grunted and dashed off, Hayden trotting after him.

Professor Oak blinked slightly, glancing at Demitri. "Wasn't that...?" Demitri nodded, Oak chuckling slightly. "Well, not only did you have a spontaneous battle, but you seem to have yourself a little rival in the making."

"Oh joy," Demitri murmured with a heavy hint of sarcasm, the duo beginning to walk off.

**-Later-**

"That certainly seems like an interesting story..."

Demitri nodded in understanding as he and Professor Oak arrived at the lab, Porygon still levitating next to them, though it had since then returned to its normal coloration. "I know...it feels really weird, that all of that happened so suddenly," Demitri continued, running a hand through his hair.

Oak chuckled slightly, opening the door to his lab. "Well, think of that as a taste of what being a Pokemon Trainer is like. Minus the random abductions, of course."

"I hope so," Demitri mumbled flatly.

The duo stepped into the lab, soon arriving back at the machinery-filled room from before. "Alright, I'd best get to work on this Porygon," Oak continbued, the Virtual Pokemon setting itself on the table.

Demitri glanced at the professor slightly, then asked, "Why did you order a Porygon again?"

"Well, you do know why Porygon is so unique, right?" Oak asked, typing a bit on a computer.

"It was the first ever man-made Pokemon?" Demitri answered, glancing back at Porygon, who beeped back at him.

Oak nodded. "Well, yes. I just wanted to study it for a little while, to get an understanding of its structure."

"I see," Demitri murmured, glancing back at Porygon again. "Anyway, I'd better get back home, my mom's probably worried."

"If you say so," the professor continued, glancing back at Demitri as he turned to walk away. "Oh, but before you go, just a quick piece of advice..."

Demitri looked back at Oak, who stood up and smiled slightly. "When you start your Pokemon journey, choose some more suitable clothing..."

The teen blinked, looking down and only now realizing he was in his plain school clothing, which was now filthy due to his latest escapade. "R-right..."

**-Later**-

Demitri arrived back at his home, the sky now darker than before, night coming on fast; several streetlights were already on. The teen opened the door, calling, "Mom, I'm-"

Before Demitri could finish his introduction, his mother appeared from the kitchen, smiling. "Demitri! I saw!"

The teen looked at his mother oddly, mumbling, "Saw...?"

"Your battle! Your first battle!" she responded ecstatically.

Demitri blinked in confusion. "What? How did you..."

"I was shopping in Viridian when I noticed the crowd that your little fight had created, and I managed to catch a glimpse of your victory!" his mother explained, the fox Pokemon from before stepping next to her and letting out a slight bark at Demitri.

The teen looked back at it, his lips pursed. "Oh...okay, that's...cool..."

His mother proceeded to place a hand on his shoulder, saying with a smile, "You really do have talent."

"Well...I still have to hone my skills..." Demitri mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

His mother chuckled slightly. "Modest-much. So, you've decided to become a Trainer?"

Demitri looked back up and nodded. "Yeah. But, I still haven't picked my first Pokemon though..."

"What about the one you were using before?" Demitri's mother asked curiously.

Demitri looked down slightly, waving his hand around. "Ah, that was supposed to belong to Professor Oak...see, I was captured by a wild Fearow while deliverring it to him from Viridian, and, since I was in a pinch, I used Porygon, and then...we were challenged out of the blue."

His mother nodded in understanding. "Well, that's what Trainers do. They live to battle and get stronger."

Demitri nodded in understanding. "Got it. Also, Oak said I should get some more suitable clothing for my journey..."

All three looked down at Demitri's clothes, the older woman folding her arms. "I would suggest that we use some of your dad's old hand-me-downs, but you aren't exactly his...build."

"Ain't that the truth..." Demitri mumbled, shrugging. "Maybe we can go shopping tomorrow?"

Demitri's mother smiled and clapped her hands together. "I know the perfect place to go! It's a boutique for Trainers with all sorts of great designs and outfits, they're sure to have something."

"Alright," Demitri responded with a nod. "We can try that. Tomorrow. I'm exhausted."


	7. The Start of the Journey

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 7-The Start Of The Journey

"'Trainer's Apparel', huh...? Seems like a kinda plain name."

Demitri and his mother now stood in front of the aforementioned building, stepping inside. "Don't worry, there's sure to be something in here," she assured him, beginning to go through some of the hangars around the room.

Demitri spectated for a little bit, only to find a tape measure being wrapped around his waist. "The hell?"

At this time, a figure had popped up seemingly from nowhere, tape measure in hand, saying in a high pitched and giddy voice, "Welcome to Trainer's Apparel! How may I help you?"

The rather flamboyant looking man continued to measure all around Demitri's body, his hair tossing about as he did so. Demitri's mother looked around, saying, "Yes, ah, we're here for-"

"I know exactly why you're here!" he responded, continuing to measure Demitri all over and prompting the teen to adopt a rather annoyed expression. "New clothes?"

The woman nodded slightly. "For my son."

The man stepped back from Demitri, putting a pen to his chin in thought. "Oohh, yes, a new up-and-coming Trainer, are we?"

Demitri continued to stare as the man began writing something down on a clipboard, going throughout the room and gathering up many different pieces. "I think I know just the thing!"

Finally, he pushed Demitri into one of the dressing rooms, closing the door and tossing the pile on the other side. The teen's mom spectated with a rather blank stare, Demitri mumbling from the other side, "These are...uuhh...what ARE these?"

"Some of our newest and most popular pieces yet!" the man explained, waving a hand about. "They'll be a little stiff at first, but after you break 'em in, you'll be glad that you came!"

During this time, the woman stepped forward, murmuring, "Excuse me...may I speak with the manager?"

The man glanced around at her with a blink. "Oh? Is something the matter?"

"Yes, ma'am...is something the matter?"

Both looked around, finding another somewhat portly, yet rather stern looking man approaching. "Um, yes," Demitri's mother began, stepping towards him. "Me and my son were looking for-"

"Practical clothing, yes," the man responded with a wave of his hand, before turning to the flamboyant man. "We have a new shipment about to arrive, would you check on it?"

The man did a salute, responded energetically, "Aye aye, sir!"

With this comment, the man dashed into the back, the manager turning towards his customer with a groan. "Interns...so, what did you say you were looking for again?"

"Something that is both durable and easy on the eyes," the woman explained, glancing over at the dressing room, where Demitri was in.

"...I don't care if it's the most popular, I'm NOT wearing this."

The manager sighed and waved a hand about. "Don't worry, I'll take care of everything..."

**-Later-**

The door to the dressing room finally opened back up, Demitri stepping out. He now wore a black jacket over a gray-colored t-shirt, and a pair of black slacks. Each one had a white stripe going horizontally along it; on the jacket, it stretched from one side of his chest to the other, with a similarly colored ring going around the knees of his slacks. Demitri looked over at the mirror, murmuring, "Mm..."

"Well...? What do you think?" the manager sitting nearby asked, glancing at Demitri's mother.

She folded her arms in thought, smiling slightly and saying, "That should work just fine. What will the cost be?"

The manager got back to his feet, arms in his suit. "Come with me, and we'll discuss that."

With this comment, Demitri's mother glanced at the teen. "You'd best get going to the professor's lab, best not to keep him waiting."

Demitri nodded, soon finding a gray bag being tossed to him from the manager. "You're gonna need that, kid. My treat," he responded with a slight smirk.

The teen nodded, slinging it over his back and stepping out of the building.

**-Later-**

Demitri soon found himself at Professor Oak's doorstep once again, ringing the doorbell. A few moments later, Oak had opened the door once again, smiling. "Ah, Demitri, there you are! I see you've made a change in clothing."

Stepping in the door, Demitri responded, "Yeah..." Oak closed the door, Demitri glancing at him. "Now then, about my starter..."

The professor nodded, leading Demitri back into the lab. He led him back to the desk where the three Poke Balls used to sit...only for Demitri to find but a single Poke Ball in the middle. The teen furrowed his brow, mumbling, "Only one? Well...guess that makes my choice all the easier..."

He proceeded to pick it up, only to blink slightly after feeling a wave of nostalgia seeming emanating from it. It felt so familiar...and yet he didn't know why. Oak seemed to chuckle upon noticing Demitri's contemplative expression. "Feel familiar?" Demitri glanced at the professor with a slight nod. "Just as I thought; you ARE your parents' son. Open it to find out why."

Demitri blinked slightly, opening the Ball up and resulting in a pillar of light being released, soon taking the shape of a familiar, pink, robotic creature on the table. It shook itself off upon emerging, Demitri blinking. "That's...Porygon?"

The Normal-type looked up, exchanging a beep that could've been thought of as having a cheery tone. Demitri glanced at Oak, murmuring, "But...didn't you need to do some tests on it or something?"

The professor waved a hand about with a smile. "Ah, I finished my work with it relatively quickly. Besides, I had a bit of a feeling it missed you."

Demitri looked back down at Porygon, who levitated up and approached the teen, responding with a slight hop and another beep. The teen managed a small smile, petting it on the head. "Well alright then..."

"Oh, and...one more thing before you go." Oak stepped towards Demitri, reaching into his coat and pulling out a small, red, rectangular box. Demitri looked down at it with a blink, Oak explaining, "I'm sure you know what a Pokedex is, yes?"

Demitri looked up with a blink and nod. "Your greatest invention...and you're giving one to me?"

The professor nodded with another smile. "Just to give you a little bit of aid on your journey..." The teen nodded slightly, accepting the device and pocketing it. Oak finished by handing him six other Poke Balls, these noticeably smaller than the one Porygon was contained in. "And six empty Poke Balls to help get you started on making a team."

Demitri accepted the mechanical orbs, placing them in one of the pockets of his bag. "Thank you."

"Well then, Demitri, what you do from here is of your own choice," the professor responded, patting him on the shoulder. "Make your parents proud."

"Riiiight..." Demitri mumbled blankly, finally stepping out of the lab. He gave a nod to Oak as he waved him off, the teen soon headed towards Route 1. Porygon levitated alongside the teen, looking down at him as he fiddled with his new Pokedex; finding the extensive Pokemon encyclopedia is granted him, as well as his Trainer information already in it. Oak had been prepared.

"Alright...if I'm not mistaken, our first stop is Viridian," Demitri remarked, him and Porygon giving a nod to each other. They continued down the path, unaware that they were being watched.

Standing on top of a tree nearby, arms folded, with a small, lanky creature on their shoulder, its bright-colored body seemingly gleaming in the moonlight. The teenage figure's eyes locked onto Demitri, a smirk finding its way onto his face. "I can sense a great potential from him...he ought to do JUST fine."


	8. The Path to Greatness

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 8-The Path To Greatness

It didn't take very long at all for Demitri to return to Viridian City; thankfully, with no more random abductions by giant bird Pokemon. "There we are..."

Porygon glanced at Demitri with a slight beep, the teen returning the glance. "Now that we're here...what do we do?"

Demitri and Porygon both stared into the air with a contemplative expression, the teen suddenly blinking. "That one kid...Zack...said something about Gyms."

The Virtual Pokemon beeped in response, Demitri glancing at it. "I guess that'd be a start."

With this comment, the teen wandered into the town, looking around with Porygon occasionally drifting from side to side. "Let's see...where was it again?"

"You can't be serious?"

Demitri stopped, blinking at the familiar voice. He turned a corner and soon noticed a certain little girl standing in front of the Gym he was looking for; like before, the door was closed and locked. Demitri furrowed his brow and leisurely stepped forward, both Trainer and Pokemon looking down at her. "...what are you doing?"

The girl, whom Demitri was now able to confirm as Anne, looked up at him and frowned. "What do you want?"

"To know why you're trying to get in there," Demitri responded flatly, tapping on the door. "Can't you read? It said it's closed."

"Gee, thanks for the heads-up, smarty pants," she responded bluntly, getting to her feet and folding her arms. Anne's attention soon drifted to Porygon, a curious expression etched on her face. "...what's that?"

Demitri followed her gaze, Porygon leaning forward with a slight buzz. "That's Porygon. My first Pokemon."

The girl blinked in surprise, glancing back at Demitri in curiosity. "Wait...does that mean you're a Pokemon Trainer now?"

A nod from the teen, and Anne folded her arms, furrowing her brow. "Ooooooh really..." With this comment, she pointed at him rather dramatically, calling, "In that case, consider me your rival!"

Demitri fell silent for several moments, staring at Anne's finger with a blank expression. "...sorry, the position's been filled. Try again later."

Anne blinked. "Wait, what's that supposed to mean?"

"I already have some weird little kid following me around with the intent of kicking my ass," Demitri responded, folding his arms and turning to the side with a sigh. "I don't need another one."

The girl puffed her cheeks out in irritation, grunting, "I oughta tear you a new one for that!" She held up a clenched fist, and growled, "C'mon! You and me, right here, right now!"

Demitri glanced at Anne out of the side of his eye, only to be interrupted when the girl's Meowth spontaneously appeared at her side, tugging on the girl's skirt. Anne looked down at it as the Meowth tapped at its wrist, as if to signal the time. The girl blinked, snapping her fingers. "Shoot, I forgot!"

She turned to Demitri, folding her arms with a huff. "Well, consider yourself lucky I have somewhere to be. But don't worry, we'll be meeting again soon! And when we do, I'll wipe the floor with you!"

Demitri blinked in surprise as Anne turned around, marching off. Porygon cast a glance at its Trainer, who shrugged and began slowly following after her. Anne soon noticed this, turning around and frowning. "What now?"

"Just out of innate curiosity..." Demitri began, folding his hands into his pockets and looking up slightly. "Where are you going?"

"None of your beeswax," she responded bluntly, continuing to walk off; Demitri continued to follow her, soon arriving at an alleyway, from which several trees could be seen coming from the distance. Demitri furrowed his brow, Anne turning back to him. "Ahem. This is private business."

"Such as?" Demitri murmured bluntly, frowning.

Anne continued to glare at him for a moment, before finally folding her arms with an irate sigh. "I'm meeting with my mentor. He left me to do a little training around here while he took care of some business, and I've gotta be meeting him soon."

Demitri blinked. "Mentor? You have a teacher?"

The girl nodded, turning back into the alleyway and walking in. Porygon slowly followed, Demitri accompanying them and entering into the end of the path; a wide open clearing that seemed to be quite affected by nature, a few trees hanging in the air that darkened the area, leaving only a few specks of light to shine through. Anne cast another glance at Demitri, saying, "Try not to embarrass yourself."

"I'll resist the temptation," Demitri responded in a sarcastic tone, folding his arms and rolling his eyes.

Anne turned back to the clearing, a voice calling seemingly out of nowhere, "Anne...you've returned. And...you brought a friend?"

"Sssssssorta," she responded, glancing at Demitri slightly. "We met on Route 1, he helped me against a bunch of wild Pokemon, then he followed me here for seemingly no reason."

"I was curious," the teen replied as-a-matter-of-factly.

The voice fell silent for a moment. "I see. In that case...allow me to introduce myse-"

The voice was abruptly cut off by some rather loud rustling, Demitri looking up at a nearby tree and watching as some of the branches began shaking about violently, the movement slowly descending downwards and accompanied by the sound of snapping branches. Finally, a figure dropped from the tree, landing rather harshly on the ground and causing Anne to gasp. The duo stepped to his side; it was a teenage boy, a little older than Demitri, with long black hair, visible purple highlights in it. He wore a black t-shirt and a red blazer with the sleeves forcefully torn off, as well as a pair of black skinny jeans, red rings running down the leggings. Finally, a sack from above landed on his back, causing him to grunt lowly. "Are you alright?" Anne gasped in shock.

The teen grunted lowly, slowly getting back to his feet and allowing for Demitri to see his dark purple-colored eyes. "I'm fine."

With this comment, the teen reached into his sack, abruptly pulling out a can which Demitri quickly identified as an energy drink. He furrowed his brow as the teen attempted to open it; however, given his abrupt landing, the contents abruptly spewed out in a fizzy fountain that drenched his face and upper body, causing Demitri and Porygon to sweatdrop in exasperation. "Is...this your mentor?"

"Yeeeeeaaaaah..." Anne responded blankly, the teen drinking from his drink without paying any heed to the fizz that now coated his body.

"That's better..." he sighed lowly, finally glancing back at Demitri. "State your name."

The teen blinked for a moment, before folding his arms. "Demitri."

Another sip from the "mentor", and he looked back at Demitri. "My name's Ranoku. Ranoku Taikin. I see you've met my student Anne."

"Yeah," Demitri responded, glancing at the little girl.

"So tell me," Ranoku continued, taking a sip of his beverage. "How long've you been a Pokemon Trainer?"

Demitri turned back to him. "Just started today."

Ranoku blinked in surprise. "Really?" He fell silent, taking another sip of his drink, then looking down at it. "...pfft, lost its carbonation..."

With this comment, he tossed the still half-way filled can into a nearby trash bin, reaching back into his pack and pulling out ANOTHER energy drink. Demitri blinked as he opened it; like before, however, a fountain of built-up fizz spewed him in the face before he took another sip of it in a rather nonchalant fashion. "So...no Gym Badges?"

Demitri furrowed his brow. "Gym Badges...?"

Anne sighed and rolled her eyes, earning a glance from Demitri. "At every Gym, there's a Gym Leader who, when you beat them, they give you a Gym Badge. You need eight of them to compete in the Pokemon League in the region."

"Kanto's Pokemon League is at the Indigo Plateau just west of here," Ranoku added, sipping from his drink. "A bit of an over-dramatization if you ask me, but still kinda prestigious. Many great Pokemon Trainers got their start at the League in their home region."

Demitri nodded slightly as Ranoku sipped from his drink again. "I've been helping train Anne so that she could participate in the League, and bring her one step closer to becoming a great Pokemon Trainer."

The little girl smiled with a rather confident expression, Demitri looking down at her. "...aren't you supposed to be 10 before you can participate in the League? You barely look like you're 8."

Anne's smile faded into an irate frown, Ranoku sipping from his beverage noisily to get their attention. "Don't worry, I've got ways of making that number seem unnecessary."

"You rigged her Trainer ID, didn't you?"

"That's not important. What is important is that I might be able to help you."

Demitri blinked slightly, Anne turning to Ranoku with a blink. "Wait, wha? What's that supposed to mean?"

Ranoku glanced at her, and responded blankly, "I think I'll take him under my wing."

Anne's eyes widened. "Wait, don't I get a say in this? I'm your pupil!"

"I still have free will, you know," Demitri pointed out blankly, furrowing his brow. "Who says I even want to train under you?"

"'Cause," Ranoku responded, glancing at Demitri. "Kanto's a big place, and I know it like the back of my right hand." He held up his right hand and showed it to Demitri. "Johto's my right palm. And Hoenn's the back of my left hand and-"

"I get it," Demitri finished bluntly, sighing. "I suppose it might be useful to have someone who knows their way around here..."

"Then it's settled!" Ranoku called, clapping his hands together and crushing the now empty can he was drinking from. "First thing's first; Viridian City has its own Gym, so-"

"The Gym's closed," Anne responded blankly, sighing and hanging her head.

Ranoku fell silent, slowly glancing at Anne with a blink. "Closed? Damn."

Demitri folded his arms. "What's the next closest Gym?"

The teen put a finger to his chin in thought. "If I'm not mistaken...Pewter City is the closest city with a Gym. It's directly to the north, on the other side of the Viridian Forest."

Anne's eyes widened, and she let out a visible shiver. "V-Viridian Forest? I-isn't that place infested with b-bugs?"

Demitri glanced at Anne with a frown. "Seriously? You're afraid of a few little insects?"

"Cut her some slack, we all have our weird little phobias," Ranoku responded with a wave of his hand. "Either way, we know our destination, so let's get going."

Ranoku turned to walk towards the exit, however, Demitri cleared his throat. "What?"

"You're covered in carbonated beverage," Demitri responded as-a-matter-of-factly. "And we're about to walk into a forest. Unless you want to be a walking adhesive, perhaps you should get a shower first."

Ranoku fell silent for a moment, looking himself over. "Point well made. Shower first, forest next chapter."


	9. Viridian Forest

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 9-Viridian Forest

It didn't take very long at all for Demitri, Anne, and Ranoku to arrive at the front of Viridian Forest; a tall, thick, and foreboding forest on the other side of Viridian City. As the trio stared up at it, occasional ominous rustling would be heard from the inside, accompanied by what might have been thought as eyes glaring at them from the shrubbery. Anne was noticeably shivering in anxiety, Demitri glancing at Ranoku out of the side of his eye. "And...we're going through here."

"Yup."

"No way around?"

Ranoku turned towards Demitri, hands on his hips. "C'mon, you can't tell me you're afraid."

"Be more specific," Demitri mumbled flatly, turning back to the forest. "More...uncertain of whether or not you can get us through in one piece."

The teen tilted his head to one side, chuckling. "Demitri, Demitri, Demitri...Viridian Forest is described by many as a natural maze. Many novice Trainers wander in here and get hopelessly lost, never to find their way out." The teen turned to them, seemingly darkening ominously as he continued. "They try and try to find their way out, but fail, being lost forever in the forest..."

This only served to frighten Anne more, the girl thrashing about on the ground and yelling, "I DON'T WANNA GO! I DON'T WANNA GOOOOOO!"

"I ask again; are you sure you can get us through there in one piece?" Demitri asked bluntly.

"Sure!" Ranoku responded, waving his hand around. "I know this place like the back of my hand."

Anne seemed to quickly get over her previous frenzy, hopping up and cheering, "That's my mentor! Always knowing the solution to a problem!"

"I try," Ranoku responded with a slight shrug; only to abruptly reach into his pack, pulling out a map and unfurling it. "Let's see if I've gotten my memorization correct..."

Demitri and Anne both fell over at this, the former mumbling, "I'm starting to reconsider this whole student deal..."

"Okay then!" Ranoku called, furling the map together and pointing forward. "Let's get moving!"

Ranoku began forcefully dragging Demitri and Anne in by their arms at this, the teen mumbling, "I'd, ah...rather not..."

"YOU CAN'T MAKE ME GO! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME GOOOOOO!"

**-Meanwhile, with another screaming baby...-**

"I WANNA GO HOME I WANNA GO HOME I WANNA GO HOOOOOOO-"

"Shut up!"

This comment resulted in a smack to the head that immediately quieted the little boy, who looked up at his older friend with a worried stare. The elder continued to study over a map, murmuring, "I'm starting to think we should've taken a left at that creepy looking tree..."

"A-are you sure you can trust a piece of paper to get us outta here, Zack?" the boy mumbled lowly.

Zack turned back to his younger companion - Hayden, no doubt - and responded confidently, "Pshh, I'm not trusting the map completely. It's a little thing called intuition, and I'm using it."

Hayden looked away slightly. "Your intuition has been getting us lost so far..."

The older boy looked down with a slight scowl, mumbling, "If you're so doubtful of my abilities, maybe YOU can lead us instead?"

This seemed to change the younger boy's tune, and he tensed up. "U-uh...lead the way!"

"That's better," Zack responded, turning around and continuing to lead the duo through the forest, finally coming to some more shrubbery, which left the duo back on a dirt path. "Hah! See, I told ya I'd find a way back on the right path!"

Hayden looked away slightly, mumbling, "Yeah, yeah..."

"Now then, let's-" Zack began, only to fall silent. Hayden heard it as well; the sound of voices and footsteps. Hayden was abruptly pulled back into the bushes by Zack, the duo peeking through the shrubbery.

"...and then I told the waitress, 'I'd prefer my meat smoked, but with you handling it, I'd best ask for it raw. Otherwise, it'd end up charred.'"

"And you wonder why you're still single?"

Zack blinked as the source of the voices stepped by; Demitri, Anne, and Ranoku, the older teen leading with Anne clinging to his leg nervously. "Aahh, you don't know anything about the finer points of romance."

"And by 'finer points', you mean 'corny pickup lines'?" Demitri asked blankly.

"Exactly."

Zack and Hayden furrowed their brows while watching the trio pass. "That was that guy from before...what was his name again?"

"Demitri?"

"Yeah, that's it." Zack blinked slightly. "Who're those two guys with him?"

"But he's with one guy and one girl."

"You get what I mean!" Zack responded in annoyance, turning back to Hayden. "Who are they and why're they following him?"

The boy recoiled slightly. "I dunno..."

Zack turned back around, furrowing his brow. "Well, then let's find out."

The duo proceeded to slink through the underbrush, following the trio; by this time, Demitri had foregone listening to Ranoku, and had gone back to messing with his Pokedex. The low beeping it gave off prompted Ranoku to stop his current monologue and glance at Demitri slightly. "Is that a...?"

Anne even turned slightly as Demitri looked up, Ranoku turning around to him. "What?"

"It is!" Ranoku stepped forth, swiping the device from Demitri and looking it over. "Old man Oak gave you a Pokedex?"

Demitri swiped it back just as quickly, responding flatly, "Yes, he did. And I'd aprreciate it if you kept your mitts off of it, who knows where they've been?"

"One, I'm not wearing mitts," Ranoku responded, holding up his bare hands towards Demitri. "Two, I swear they're clean."

Demitri furrowed his brow at this, Anne clearing her throat to get the duo's attention. "Ranoku? What's a Pokedex? you never mentioned anything like that to me before."

"Oh, how silly of me!" he responded, slapping himself in the head and reaching into his pocket, abruptly pulling out a red-colored device similar to Demitri's; the only difference being that it looked much newer and advanced, with what looked to be a touch screen. "This is a Pokedex, the ultimate Pokemon encyclopedia, created by the esteemed Professor Samuel Oak."

Anne blinked slightly as Ranoku began going through its multiple features. "Information on just about every other Pokemon in the world, acts as a means of Trainer ID for those lucky enough to own one, team management...only given to those deemed worthy by the Oak man himself."

Demitri furrowed his brow. "And...he gave one to you?"

"Got that right," the teen responded with a slight smirk, setting his Pokedex away. "You must be fairly skilled yourself to have gotten his attention."

"I wouldn't say THAT..." Demitri mumbled blankly with a sweatdrop. "Probably more to do with my-"

Demitri's sentence was abruptly cut off when the Pokedex was snatched from his hand, the trio jumping slightly and looking at the source; a small, brown-feathered bird. "A Pidgey?" Ranoku mumbled blankly.

At this time, a rather victorious laugh was heard, the trio turning around as the Pidgey alighted on the arm of a familiar boy standing on a tree branch. "You?" Demitri grunted in annoyance.

The blond boy continued to chuckle slightly as the Pidgey surrendered the Pokedex to him, Anne murmuring with a frown, "Who's that?"

"Zack," Demitri responded blankly, sighing. "Some kid who's automatically labelled me his rival just because we started out around the same time?"

"Wait, you already have a rival?" Ranoku asked, glancing at Demitri before clasping his hands together, adopting an expression of adoration. "My little pupil's growing up so fast!"

Everyone sweatdropped at this, Demitri turning back to Zack. "Give me that back. You don't know what it is."

Zack waved the device around. "Oh, you mean this thing that your friend over there just HAPPENED to explain in great detail not two seconds ago that I happened to hear every word of?"

A vein popped from Demitri's head. "You were...eavesdropping on us. Have you been following me?"

"Nah," Zack responded absent-mindedly, shrugging. "Just happened to pass by and saw you. Anyway, I-"

"I'm...I'm here..." Everyone looked at Zack's side, just in time to notice Hayden only now clambering onto the branch, flopping onto his side with a pant. "Hoo...climbing trees is...hard..."

The group stared at him for a moment, Zack turning back towards Demitri. "Aaaaaanyway...if you want your little thingamajig back, you'll have to find me and battle me for it!"

With this comment, Zack hopped out of sight, Hayden groaning and hopping after him...only to collapse onto the forest floor and scamper after him. "Damn twerp..." Demitri grunted, Ranoku stepping towards the portion of the forest Zack stepped down.

"Come on, let's go after them," the teen responded, Demitri and Anne following along after him. "They couldn't have gotten too far. And even if they did..."

The teen proceeded to reach into his pack, pulling out a Poke Ball with a slight smirk. "I have no qualms with chopping this entire forest down to find 'em."

"That seems a tad overly destructive," Demitri responded blankly. "Won't that affect the wildlife around here?"

Ranoku turned back to Demitri with a blank stare. "There are tons and tons of trees out here, chopping down a few hundred won't hurt anybody."

Demitri stared back at Ranoku, looking down at Anne with a blank stare, as if translating his disbelief at the teen's antics. "W-well...he's an awesome Trainer!" she responded defensively. "You wouldn't last two seconds in a battle with him!"

The teen sighed at this, Ranoku tossing his Poke Ball forth and releasing a pillar of light. Said pillar finally materialized on a nearby branch, taking shape; a small, pink creature with long, sharp claws, and a yellow-colored feather-like extension coming from the side of its head. It swung its claws about, seemingly flicking off a small cloud of glittering dust. Ranoku looked up, saying, "Sneasel, help search for two kids, one of 'em's got a Pokedex. Version 1.5."

With this comment, the small pink Pokemon dashed into the forest, doing many acrobatic loops and maneuvers while occasionally slicing a branch away, Demitri and the others following after it. "Are you sure we'll be able to find our way out of here atfer we leave the path?" Anne asked with a slight tinge of worry.

"Sure we can," Ranoku responded, waving a hand around. "We should be just fine."

Demitri furrowed his brow at this, mumbling, "Uh huh..."

Ranoku turned back to Demitri with a frown. "Look, do you want your Pokedex back or not?"

"Kinda, yeah," he responded blankly.

"Then quit your bellyaching and come on."

The trio continued to walk for several moments, Sneasel suddenly dropping back from the canopy and motioning forward. "What's that?" Ranoku asked, bending down as Sneasel made several squeaks and motioned ahead of that. "You say little Timmy's trapped at the bottom of the well?" Sneasel continued to squeak. "Huh? The winning numbers for next week's lottery?"

Demitri and Anne exchanged an exasperated glance as Ranoku began scribbling something on a notepad. "Uh huh...uh huh...and the meaning of life? You don't say?"

"AHEM," Demitri mumbled noisily, Ranoku glancing up at him. "Didn't you send it to look for my Pokedex?"

Ranoku fell silent for a moment. "Oh yeah. I did." He straightened himself back out, brushing some of the hair from his eyes. "Sneasel says that those two're right ahead. Proceed with cautioun."


	10. Rematch in Viridian Forest

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 10-Rematch in Viridian Forest

The trio finally came to a halt, peeking out of a pair of bushes into a clearing where, true to Sneasel's claim, Zack and Hayden were currently sitting. The former was going through Demitri's Pokedex, the Pidgey still on its shoulder, preening itself. "There they are," Anne mumbled lowly. "Let's go, now!"

"Ah ah ah, not so fast," Ranoku responded, pulling her back down as she went to stand up. "We need to catch them by surprise."

Demitri glanced at Ranoku, murmuring, "How do you propose we do that...?"

"Don't doubt his skills!" Anne hissed back, turning back to Ranoku. "What do we need?"

The teen fell silent for a moment, rubbing his chin in thought. "Hm, lemme think..."

Several moments passed in silence, Demitri's eye twitching. "Any day now..."

More time passed. Demitri finally sighed irritably, mumbling, "Look, if you're not going to do something, then I-"

"Got it," Ranoku suddenly remarked, dragging Demitri back down. "I've got a plan. A good one, too."

During this time, Zack and Hayden continued to sit in the clearing, the younger boy occasionally swinging his legs over the side of the boulder he was sitting on. "Are you done yet, Zack? I wanna get moving..."

"In a minute," Zack mumbled flatly, waving his hand around. "This thing's pretty cool! Why didn't old man Oak give one to me?"

"'Cause he's mean," Hayden responded with a slight pout. "That's all I can think of."

Zack shrugged slightly, just in time to hear a loud bursting sound and a bright flash of light from nearby; coincidentally, the bushes that Demitri, Anne, and Ranoku were hiding behind. Both boys blinked, Hayden mumbling, "Wh-what was that?"

"The unmistakable sound of a Poke Ball being activated," Zack mumbled, narrowing his gaze. "Those guys must've thought they could get the jump on me, eh? Well that won't work."

During this time, the screen of Demitri's Pokedex had began changing, finally showing the image of Porygon. A low buzzing came from the device, prompting Zacck to look down at it in confusion. "What the-"

Zack's comment was abruptly cut off when a bright flash of light emerged from the screen, Porygon abruptly materializing and catching the Pokedex on its snout as Zack was knocked away from the force of the entrance. The Virtual Pokemon then flipped backwards, catapulting Demitri's Pokedex into the air, where its owner abruptly stood up and caught it. "What...how did..." Zack stammered bluntly.

During this time, Ranoku had stood up, arms folded with a slight chuckle; in his hand was his own Pokedex. "Porygon have the power to travel through cyberspace, from one electrical device to another. Professor Oak made the Pokedex so that they all ran on the same frequency, sharing the same little stream of cyberspace."

The teen lifted up his own Pokedex, finishing, "All I had to do was make Porygon travel from my Pokedex to his for a perfect sneak attack."

Zack gawked at the teen for a moment as Demitri pocketed his Pokedex, mumbling, "Alright, I WILL admit that was pretty clever."

"Told ya!" Anne shouted as Porygon retreated to its Trainer's side.

Zack gritted his teeth at this, fishing out another Poke Ball as his Pidgey alighted off of his shoulder. "Laugh it up while you can, because now I'm going to defeat you!"

With this comment, he tossed his Poke Ball forth, releasing his Charmander in a pillar of light. Both Pokemon stepped forward, Demitri narrowing his gaze. "I beat you before, I can very well do it again."

"Not when it's two against one," Zack responded with a cocky smirk. "Maybe if there were two of you, you MIGHT have a chance."

Demitri narrowed his gaze, Ranoku glancing at him. "I'm fairly sure Demitri has another Pokemon. Show him."

A few moments passed in silence, Demitri glancing at Ranoku blankly. The teen stared back at him, mumbling, "You don't even have two Pokemon. Wow, you're behind."

Zack smirked again, pointing forward. "And since I have the advantage of numbers, this victory is sure to be mine! Charmander, Scratch!"

The orange lizard abruptly charged forward, claws extended, Demitri and Porygon spacing themselves out to get into a defensive position. Before the attack could impact, however, another figure abruptly leaped in the way, clashing claws with Charmander; a Meowth. "I don't think so!"

Demitri glanced to the side at Anne, who stepped next to him, arms folded. Zack glanced at the girl, grunting, "This doesn't concern you, pipsqueak. Butt out!"

"It does now!" Anne retorted with an enraged expression. "And don't call me pipsqueak! I could still kick your butt up and down this entire forest!"

"Not that I'm thrilled about you helping me," Demitri responded with a thick layer of sarcasm, glancing at Anne. "But why're you offering your services to help me?"

Anne glanced at the teen with a slight frown. "Look, Ranoku might see something in you, but I still don't think you could handle two opponents at once with only one Pokemon. Besides..."

With this comment, she struck a pose, one hand perched on her hip and the other pointing at Zack, Anne winking. "This is the perfect chance for me to strut my stuff!"

Zack scowled at this as Meowth and Charmander leaped away from each other. "Tch, just because the battle's even now, doesn't mean you have a chance at winning!" Zack called, pointing forward. "Prepare to be defeated!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri, Pkmn Trainer Anne vs. Pkmn Trainer Zack **  
**Location: Viridian Forest **  
**Multi Battle**

"Don't be arrogant," Demitri snapped back, motioning forward. "Porygon, Psybeam!"

The Normal-type obeyed, shooting several blasts of rainbow energy towards the two opponents. Charmander danced out of the way of each while Pidgey lifted itself into the air to avoid; however, during this time, Meowth had leapt up the branches of a nearby tree, managing to catapult itself toweards Pidgey. "Show it your Scratch attack!" Anne commanded, punching forward.

Meowth let out a snarl and swung its claws towards Pidgey, who quickly scrambled back to avoid, and prompting Meowth to fall back to the ground; coincidentally, right in front of Charmander, whose mouth was leaking flames. "Charmander, torch that kitten with an Ember!" Zack ordered.

Charmander let out a shout and shot several flaming darts at Meowth at point-blank range, the cat sent toppling backwards before rolling to a halt. It looked up as Pidgey began diving down towards it, Zack shouting, "Good! Follow up with a Tackle!"

"I don't think so," Demitri responded, Porygon abruptly levitating down in front of Meowth and charging forward as well, Pidgey and Porygon impacting with a loud thunk. The impact knocked Pidgey to the ground, staggering about with a lethargic coo as Porygon shook itself off. "Now, finish it with a Psybeam!"

"Counter with Ember!" Zack retorted, Charmander abruptly spewing an array of flaming darts at Porygon to cut off its attack, resulting in an explosion that clouded the area and hid the combatants from view.

Demitri furrowed his brow at this, Porygon and Meowth quickly hopping out of the smokescreen. "Gust!"

The smoke was abruptly parted by an intense burst of wind generated by Pidgey, the current slamming into Porygon and Meowth, knocking them skidding back slightly. Zack continued to smirk, shouting, "Time to finish this! Charmander, one more Ember!"

The lizard took a breath, finally firing off a large array of embers towards the two opponents and prompting them to look up. "Going up," Demitri responded, Porygon abruptly positioning itself under Meowth and lifting the cat into the air, perching them high above the battlefield.

Zack looked up with a slight chuckle, calling, "Oh, you wanna take this battle to the skies? Fine by me! Pidgey, after them!"

With this command, the bid quickly gave chase, headed right towards them. Demitri frowned slightly, mumbling, "Probably not the best idea...Porygon, Psybeam!"

The Virtual Pokemon shot several psychic blasts towards Pidgey, who expertly wheeled out of the way and shot towards Porygon. Anne, on the other hand, smirked, shouting, "Gotcha! Take it out with a Fury Swipes!"

Pidgey didn't have enough time to stop or avoid when Meowth lunged forth, releasing a flurry of claw swipes at the bird's body and sending both plummeting towards the ground. Zack's eyes widened, the boy growling, "Ggh...Charmander, knock it off with an Ember!"

The fire lizard abruptly shot several flaming darts towards the two combatants; instead, Meowth leaped off of Pidgey, resulting in the attack missing them both, and Pidgey hitting the ground hard with one final squeak, finally unconscious. Zack gritted his teeth in anger, shouting, "I'm not done yet!"

"Oh yes you are," Demitri responded, pointing downwards. "Porygon, Tackle."

Zack and Charmander both looked up at this, finding Porygon rocketing downwards at a surprisingly high speed. The fire lizard's eyes widened as Porygon smashed, snout first, into the fire-type's head, a resounding "bonk" being heard through the area. Porygon levitated up as Charmander staggered back, finally flopping onto its back with one low murmur, unconscious. "And that's a wrap!" Anne called, striking another victory pose.

"It looks like we win," Demitri murmured, folding his arms as Porygon levitated to his side with several victorious beeps, Anne making several more victory poses while Meowth kept its arms folded with a confident smirk.

Zack returned both Pokemon at this, gripping his fists in irritation. "You...this isn't over! Not by a long shot! I WILL return, and I WILL defeat you!"

"Keep talking," Anne responded, making a mock talking motion with her hands as Zack and Hayden retreated into the forest once again.

Ranoku, who had been spectating with Sneasel the entire time, stood up, crushing his now empty soda can. "Impressive. Of course, given that you had two Trainers working together as opposed to his one...I still think you both did well."

Anne placed her hands on her hips, chuckling, "Of course...was there ever any doubt?"

"There was for a second, but that's not the point," Ranoku responded with a wave of his hand, Anne giving a slight sweatdrop as he began headed back towards the forest. "Let's get back on the path so we can get out of here."

The duo proceeded to follow along after Ranoku, Zack and Hayden peeking from the bushes after them. "Tch...can't believe it..." the older growled in irritation. "How could this have happened?"

"Well, the tall guy said there was two of them and only one of you," Hayden pointed out.

"Since when do we listen to what the tall guy has to say?" Zack shot back in irritation. "We don't even know who he is, or why he's with Demitri! Same goes for that little girl!"

Hayden tilted his head to one side. "Think they're his friends or something?"

Zack waved a hand around, mumbling, "Ah, him and the girl didn't seem to be on very friendly terms...however..."

He turned back to where the trio had left, musing, "That older boy seemed to be in charge...like...a teacher, or something."

"So, you think they got a teacher?" Hayden asked, tilting his head to one side.

"Maybe," Zack responded, rubbing his chin in thought. "Perhaps he's some sort of Pokemon guru that's teaching Demitri how to be an even better Trainer."

The boy stood up at this, shouting, "And I will not stand for it!" He turned to Hayden, adding, "We need to find out more. Which means..." Zack adopted an evil smirk, drumming his fingers together. "...it's time for a little espionage..."

Hayden stared at Zack for a moment. "What's that mean?"

"I dunno," Zack responded with a nonchalant shrug. "I heard it on a spy movie once, and I thought it sounded cool."

"Ooohhh," Hayden responded with a slight nod, the duo quietly slinking through the underbrush after Demitri and the others.


	11. It's A Trap!

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 11-It's A Trap!

Demitri and co. continued to walk through the forest silently, save for a few occasions wherein Anne would squeal as a bug Pokemon came crawling or flying by. The path seemed to extend on forever; the sky was starting to become a deep orange color, a sign that night was coming on fast. "Are we there yet?" Anne shouted in irritation.

"Well," Ranoku began, glancing at her slightly. "Do you see any buildings?"

"No," Anne responded, folding her arms with a huff. "But it feels like we've been in the same spot for hours!"

Demitri rolled his eyes at this. "That's very unlikely."

"I said it FEELS!" Anne retorted in irritation, hanging her head with a groan.

"Regardless, we should be close to getting out," Ranoku responded, crushig another empty energy drink can and depositing it in his satchel. "Then we can get a good night's sleep, and prepare for the Gym battle."

Demitri shrugged at this, Anne sighing again before looking up. Her eyes widened. "Hey, what's that over there?"

Several feet away was a portion of the forest that had opened up slightly, allowing for a somewhat large building to be seen. "Is that it? Are we finally out of this forest?" Anne asked, rushing towards it.

Demitri furrowed his brow at this, Ranoku shrugging. "I think I remember some refreshment station being set up somewhere near the border of the forest."

"You think that's it?" Demitri asked, looking at Ranoku as they approached the building, Anne looking around; the building was surrounded by more forest, as well as another path still headed down the same way they were previously going.

"NO FAIR!" Anne cried, slumping down on the ground and beating it with her fists. "I WAS GETTING HOPEFUL TOO!"

"Calm down," Demitri uttered, looking at the door to the building; which was fairly rusted and seemingly old-looking. "...it seems abandoned."

"Oh, come now," Ranoku responded with a shrug, throwing open the doors and stepping into the doorway. "There is such a thing as people forgetting to put some lubrication on the handles." The teen fell silent for a moment, only to break into a large grin and begin snickering to himself, bending over slightly. "...which is what she said..."

Demitri and Anne were unable to suppress a sweatdrop, the duo looking at each other. "Are you SURE he's a competent Pokemon Trainer...?"

"Well of course!" Anne retorted in irritation. "He's just a little...weird sometimes, is all!"

"Sometimes being 'all the time'?" Demitri mumbled flatly, watching as Ranoku stepped into the building. "...we've gotta follow him, huh...?"

Anne gulped, nervously following Ranoku into the building. "W-...wait for me!"

Demitri sighed in irritation, following the two inside and looking around at the dimly lit room. Although it was lit only by the afternoon light outside, Demitri was able to see the decrepit insides, accompanied by a fairly large amount of dust settled everywhere. The entrance room was fairly large, with several outdated kiosks advertising several different beverages or snacks. "...are you SURE this place isn't abandoned?"

Ranoku looked around for a moment, shrugging. "Eh. Now that you mention it, there IS a lot of glaring evidence."

Demitri facepalmed in irritation, turning towards the doors. He prepared to step out, only for them to abruptly slam shut, the teen blinking in surprise. "What the..."

He rammed his shoulder against the door for a few moments, frowning in irritation. "The hell...?"

On the other side of the building, the middle of the doors was currently having a barrage of embers being fired down it, managing to weld the two together. "Alright, that ought to do it. Good job, Charmander."

The orange lizard let out a cheer in response, turning to Zack and Hayden. The smaller child looked up at Zack, murmuring, "You sure that's not going overboard...?"

Zack shook his head, smirking confidently. "I've come to the conclusion that Demitri is no moron. He'll find a way out of there, believe me. And by the time he does, we should be pretty far off."

Hayden furrowed his brow slightly. "You're giving him an awful lot of credit..."

The older boy looked at Hayden with a slight frown. "C'mon, he beat me TWICE in a row. He's got to have a bit of skill."

With this comment, Zack began walking back into the forest, Hayden looking at the building again and following after him. Back inside, Demitri had began kicking at the door in irritation, panting slightly. "Damn it...it won't budge."

Ranoku cleared his throat, lightly pulling Demitri out of the way and stepping towards the door. "Leave it to me." He proceeded to spit on both hands, rubbing them together and slamming them against the door. "Open sesame!"

Several moments passed in silence, a vein popping from Demitri's head. "Let me handle it, I'm blasting that door down."

He pulled out a Poke Ball at this, Ranoku quickly turning towards Demitri. "Don't!"

"Why not?" Anne asked with a frown.

"Because," Ranoku responded, turning to her and folding his arms. "We're not going around destroying stuff. That's both barbaric and a disgrace to this place."

Anne stared at Ranoku for a moment, Demitri rolling his eyes. "Look, this is a choice between being stuck here, or worrying about desecrating an abandoned refreshment stand."

"Don't worry," Ranoku responded, waving a hand about. "We'll find a way out of here, don't you worry."

"And how do you propose we do that?" Demitri asked with a frown.

Ranoku put a finger to his chin. "Hm...lemme think..."

A few more moments passed in silence, Demitri turning to the door. "I'm going to blast the door down whether you like it or no-"

Demitri's comment was cut off by a resounding, echoing laughing sound going all throughout the room, Demitri and Anne looking up slightly. "What now...?" the teen mumbled.

Anne quickly clung to Ranoku, who shrugged slightly. "Maybe this place is haunted."

"H-haunted?" Anne squeaked in a panic, noticeably trembling.

"Yes," Ranoku responded, advancing towards Demitri with a crazed expression, wiggling his fingers. "And they're here to get you for thinking about desecrating this most sacred place by blowing down doors! Ooooooooooo!"

Demitri proceeded to plant a palm on Ranoku's face, pushing him back. "First off, I don't believe in ghosts. Second, even if that were the case, it just gives us more of a reason to leave."

The laughing persisted, followed by a feminine voice calling out. "Oh Ranoku...always coming up with oddball solutions when the answer is right in front of you. You STILL haven't changed at all."

The voice seemed to cause Ranoku's formerly crazed expression to turn to one deadly serious, Anne's eyes widening. "Is...is that..."

Demitri furrowed his brow in curiosity, his attention brought to one of the balconies overlooking the large room. Someone was standing on it, the figure abruptly leaping off and landing on the ground. Ranoku turned back to the figure, Demitri able to get a good look at them; a teenage girl with waist length, jet-black hair, wearing a blue tank top over a long sleeved, black shirt, and a blue and black striped pair of jeans. A smirk was carved into the teenage girl's mouth, Demitri narrowing his gaze. "Who are you...?"

"Ilohe," Ranoku uttered with a dark tone, narrowing his gaze and stepping forth. "What are you doing here?"

The girl, Ilohe, chuckled again, still smirking widely; it was almost creepy to watch. "Oh, isn't it obvious what I'm here for? I'm just lucky I managed to find you here." She tapped the side of her head. "Woman's premonition. Never fails."

Ranoku kept a serious expression, quite different from the playful, seemingly incompetent teen Demitri had seen previously. He glanced at Anne, mumbling, "What's going on?"

Anne turned to Demitri with a blank expression. "That's Ilohe...some crazy Trainer who's obssessed with defeating Ranoku. Lord knows why."

Ranoku fished in his satchel for a moment, pulling out a Poke Ball. "So you're going to try and defeat me again?" With this comment, a smirk came onto Ranoku's face next. "Bad idea. You know what happened all the other times we faced off. I mopped the floor with you."

Ilohe's smirk changed to a frown, prompting her to reveal a Poke Ball from her own satchel. "Don't start getting arrogant, Ranoku. This time will be different!"

Ranoku glanced at Demitri and Anne out of the side of his eye. "Step back. Ilohe's a tough customer, not one to be taken lightly. Especially by inexperienced Trainers."

Demitri furrowed his brow slightly, but was pulled back regardless by Anne. "Go get her, Ranoku!" Anne shouted. "Kick her butt!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Ranoku vs. Pkmn Trainer Ilohe **  
**Location: Viridian Forest **  
**Single Battle**

"I don't think so," Ilohe responded, hurling her Poke Ball forward; it burst open, revealing a large, dinosaur-like Pokemon with blue skin, several spikes on its back and head, and seemingly feminine features.

_Nidoqueen, the Drill Pokemon. The evolved form of Nidorina. Its hard scales provide strong protection. It uses its hefty bulk to execute powerful moves._

"I do think so," Ranoku responded, tossing his first Poke Ball forward; the Pokemon that was unleashed was a large, pink Pokemon with a rather dopey expression and a large, spiral shaped shell attached to its tail.

_Slowbro, the Hermit Crab Pokemon. The evolved form of Slowpoke. The Shellder that latches onto Slowpoke's tail is said to feed on the host's leftover scraps._

Once both Pokemon had been called forth, Ilohe pointed forward, shouting, "Go! Superpower!"

With this comment, Nidoqueen began charging forward, arm glowing brightly. It wound up in preparation for an attack, only for Ranoku to shout, "Quick, dodge!"

Slowbro let out a dopey yawn, abruptly stumbling out of the path right next to Nidoqueen, Demitri managing a slight blink. "He managed to get a Pokemon with such awkward mobility to move like that...?"

Nidoqueen made several more swinging motions towards Slowbro, the Water-type avoiding each one with several more, seemingly uncoordinated steps. Ilohe let out a grunt in irritation, Ranoku commanding, "Now, hit it with a Psychic!"

Slowbro's eyes began glowing blue at this; Nidoqueen's fist came mere inches in front of its face before the dinosaur-like Pokemon was sent flying backwards, landing with a crash onto the ground and slowly staggering back to its feet. Ilohe narrowed her gaze, uttering, "So, you wanna play a long-ranged fight, mm...? Earth Power!"

Nidoqueen abruptly plowed a fist into the ground, several cracks making their way towards Slowbro. The Hermit Crab Pokemon looked down as the ground underneath it exploded, sending Slowbro high into the air with a low groan. Ranoku frowned as Nidoqueen leaped up after it, Ilohe's smirk returning. "Now, hit it with an Iron Tail!"

With this command, Nidoqueen's tail begin glowing rather brightly, the Drill Pokemon abruptly spinning around and slamming its tail onto Slowbro's head, sending it rocketing back to the ground. A loud crash was heard upon collision, Nidoqueen landing with a powerful thud on the ground. Ilohe continued to smirk, only for the resulting smoke cloud to finally dissipate, revealing a mostly unharmed Slowbro to be seen, still on its feet with the same, dopey expression as before. Ilohe frowned, grumbling, "Tch...resilient thing..."

"Wouldn't you know it?" Ranoku asked with a smirk, pointing forward. "Now, finish it off with a Surf!"

Slowbro let out a rather mild-mannered yawn, some water beginning to collect under its body. Demitri and Anne looked down as Slowbro was abruptly lifted up on a rather large wave, headed straight for Nidoqueen. Ilohe's eyes widened, and she quickly hopped out of the way as the wave crashed into Nidoqueen's body, sending it flying back as Slowbro skidded to a halt, the Drill Pokemon collapsing with a low groan. "Gah! You!" Ilohe growled, quickly returning Nidoqueen to its Ball. "Don't even think this is over yet!"

"I'd be disappointed if it were," Ranoku responded plainly, Ilohe pulling out another Poke Ball. "Then thrashing you about over and over would get too boring."


	12. Rivals

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 12-Rivals

**Battle Re-cap**

**Pkmn Trainer Ranoku  
Slowbro  
?**  
**?**

**Pkmn Trainer Ilohe  
Nidoqueen (KO by Slowbro)  
****?  
? **

This comment didn't seem to go over well with Ilohe, who promptly threw her next Poke Ball forward; the Pokemon released was some sort of blue creature with a cube-like body, and four oversized, red petals on its head.

_Vileplume, the Flower Pokemon. The evolved form of Gloom. The larger its petals, the more toxic pollen it contains. Its big head is heavy and hard to hold up._

Ilohe managed a smirk back, pointing forwared and shouting, "Hit it with a cloud of Stun Spore!"

With this command, Vileplume began spinning around on its heel, suddenly sending out a sizeable cloud of yellow dust all over the field. Ranoku and the others stepped back to avoid being caught in the cloud, however, Slowbro wasn't as lucky and was hit directly. Ranoku's eyes widened, Anne gasping, "Oh no!"

"Oh yes," Ilohe responded, stepping back slightly and pressing a button on the wall. A loud grinding sound was heard, and the group looked up; the ceiling was beginning to open up, allowing for the orange-colored sky to be seen. "It's starting to get dark, so I'll have to squeeze out as much light as I can...Vileplume, Solarbeam!"

The Grass-type obeyed, lowering its head slightly and causing a trail of light to begin gathering in the middle of its head, where the four petals met. Ranoku grunted, murmuring, "Slowbro's paralyzed, he won't be able to move out of the way fast enough..."

With this comment, Demitri and Anne quickly stepped out of the way as Vileplume fired off a large blast of yellow energy, striking Slowbro directly and sending it flying backwards, smashing to the ground with a thud. "Slowbro!"

"One down, two to go," Ilohe responded with a chuckle, setting a hand on her hip. "Think you've got what it takes to take me down now?"

Ranoku furrowed his brow, Demitri looking up slightly. His gaze kept flying about the now open ceiling. "...we can climb out of here through the ceiling."

Anne blinked and looked up as well, turning her head about. "Are you sure? That seems like a bit of a stretch."

"I've had my Porygon air lift me down larger drops, this won't be an issue at all," Demitri responded plainly, looking at Ranoku. "But if she's able to control the way the ceiling opens and closes, she'll be able to try and close it should she notice us trying to get out."

Ranoku nodded back. "You two start getting up there, I'll keep her occupied."

Both nodded and began rushing off towards a nearby flight of stairs, Ilohe looking at the duo with a blink. "If it isn't Ranoku's bratty little girl friend and..." She paused in thought. "...some other kid I don't know. Trying to escape behind my back, huh?"

Anne had stopped to make a face at Ilohe, only to be interrupted when Demitri began dragging her back up the stairs by her hair. "Hey, your fight's with me, remember?" Ranoku asked, tossing his Poke Ball about. "I'd like for you not to forget that."

Ilohe glanced back at the older teen as he tossed his next Poke Ball forth; the pink weasel he had brought forth previously was released, extending its claws as its body gave off a bright glimmer. Ilohe blinked slightly. "Oh, your little pink buddy again?"

"I'd like to finish this battle nice and quick-like," Ranoku responded, reaching into his pack and pulling out an energy drink. After opening it, he took a swig and wiped his mouth off, calling, "Sneasel, Ice Punch!"

The weasel proceeded to clench its fist, abruptly charging forward at a high speed once its hand had began glowing a bright blue. Vileplume once again ducked its head as Sneasel impacted it right in the middle, sending it staggering backwards with a slightly dizzier expression. Sneasel had held up one of its claws in an inviting fashion, Ilohe snarling in annoyance. "Annoying little...Solarbeam, again!"

Vileplume ducked its head again, beginning to gather more light energy in the middle. Sneasel expertly dashed to the side during the charging process, managing to have ran all the way around Vileplume before it fired off its attack, which had forced Ranoku to quickly hop out of the way to avoid being hit. The attack impacted a wall with a crash, the teen blinking. "You'd best watch where you're shooting those, you might open an avenue for me to escape."

Ilohe scowled in annoyance as Vileplume raised its head; however, Sneasel had already made its way behind Vileplume, prompting the Grass-type to turn around. "Ice Punch!"

The Sharp Claw Pokemon abruptly slung its fist towards Vileplume, hitting it right in the face and sending it flying backwards with surprising force, landing with a powerful thud on the ground. Ilohe growled in irritation as Sneasel hopped back to its master's side of the field, Ranoku chuckling to himself. "Two down, one to go."

"And no more ceiling for you," Ilohe responded, abruptly pressing the button next to her. The loud grinding sound was heard for a moment, only to be followed by a sickening groan; the ceiling didn't close up either, prompting Ilohe to frown. "The hell...?"

Her gaze went to one side of the wall on the second floor, where a crowbar was now stuck in between two of the gears, preventing it from closing properly. Nearby, Demitri and Anne were stacking various boxes and other objects in an attempt at making a ladder with which to get past the wall. Ilohe narrowed her gaze in irritation, Ranoku managing a chuckle and taking another swig of his drink. "That's my apprentices."

Ilohe glared back at Ranoku, clenching her teeth together. After taking a deep breath, she gave way to a smile. "You're really grating on my nerves. But getting angry about it won't help at all; instead, I think I'll cool myself, and YOU, off!"

She proceeded to throw another Poke Ball forward, this time releasing what appeared to be a more humanoid Pokemon with dark-colored skin, long blonde hair, a pair of noticeable, thick lips, and a red dress.

_Jynx, the Human Shape Pokemon. It seductively wiggles its hips as it walks. It can cause people to dance in unison with it._

Ilohe pointed forward threateningly, shouting, "Blizzard, now!"

Jynx proceeded to take a breath, and abruptly let out what sounded like a loud bellow, prompting a noticeable wind to begin picking up. It was soon accompanied by a very noticeable drop in temperature, forcing Ranoku and Sneasel to cover their faces to avoid being lashed at by the stinging cold. The attack had even affected Demitri and Anne, the duo wincing slightly and causing the girl to shout, "H-hey!"

"I didn't dress appropriately for this!" Demitri scowled in irritation, looking up; he soon noticed that the cold temperature had caused the gears to begin crunching together a little louder, the crowbar they had stuck in it earlier beginning to stress under the cold temperatures, while the gears themselves were a little luckier due to the stress of trying to close the ceiling unsuccessfully keeping them warm. His eyes widened slightly as the crowbar was finally shattered, prompting the wind to die down as the gears returned to their former movements.

Ranoku blinked and looked up, quickly noticing the ceiling beginning to close up once again. "Damn it! You bitch!"

"I try," Ilohe responded with a victorious laugh, pointing forward. "Jynx, Wake-Up Slap!"

The Human Shape Pokemon charged forward at a surprising speed, its palm outstretched. It made several slapping motions towards Sneasel, the Dark-type quickly ducking and avoiding each swipe in a frenzy. Ranoku looked back up in irritation, murmuring, "C'mon you two, any day now..."

Anne had began looking frantically throughout the upper floor for something else to jam the gears with, groaning, "Gah, there's gotta be something we can use!"

"It wouldn't do us any good anyway," Demitri responded in irritation, looking up at the half-way closed ceiling. "It isn't opened up enough for us to climb out just by jamming the gears."

Demitri looked around in curiosity, quickly taking notice of another console button similar to the one Ilohe had been using. He furrowed his brow slightly. "It's a stretch, given this old tech...but..."

Sneasel's movements had by now began slowing slightly as it continued to try and hold off Jynx, finally grabbing a hold of its hands before they could impact from both sides. Ilohe smirked. "Looks to me like you're at the end of your rope, Ranoku."

The teen glared back at her in irritation, Sneasel letting out a low grunt as it hit its knees in irritation. "I'll defeat you even if I have to lock you here for the rest of your days!" she shouted back victoriously, letting out several hysterical laughs.

Ranoku frowned slightly, only to blink upon noticing the console she was standing next to give a slight spark. He blinked, quickly taking notice of the ceiling beginning to open up again. Ilohe also looked up with a slight frown, mumbling, "Tch, just because you have a console too doesn't mean I can't still close it!"

She proceeded to press the button on the console again; however, instead of it beginning to close the ceiling back, it gave off a bright array of sparks and an electric shock, the girl letting out a loud yelp as she retracted her hand, her hair now sticking out at a rather unsightly angle. "The hell?"

"It's amazing that even a Pokemon knows how this old machinery works, isn't it?" Demitri called from above, his Porygon appearing next to him with a loud beep. "Even Porygon knew how to redirect the power supply to overload your side of the console while keeping ours intact without me giving any further instructions."

Ilohe glared back at the teen with an enraged scowl, Ranoku smirking back. "Well, I guess I underestimated your brainpower, Demitri! Nice going!"

The teen gave back a calm, yet rather confident smirk before going back to helping Anne get a stable pile ready, Ilohe stomping a foot on the ground and shouting. "Gah! This wasn't supposed to happen!"

"If it weren't, then why is this only one time amidst millions of others that had the same result?" Ranoku asked, pointing forward. "Sneasel, Night Slash!"

Taking advantage of the momentary pause in the battle, Sneasel abruptly broke away from the off-balance Jynx, and gave two powerful slashes across its front with its claws, sending the Human Shape Pokemon flying backwards rather powerfully, toppling to a halt with a low grunt. "Three strikes, you're out. I win again," Ranoku finished, quickly stepping up the stairwell with Sneasel in hot pursuit.

The teen quickly arrived at Demitri and Anne's location, taking notice of the tall pile they had created. "You kicked her butt!" Anne shouted, pumping a fist into the air. "I almost got distracted!"

"Yes, that deserves a cheer," Demitri uttered before rolling his eyes. "Now let's get out of here, I've gone through more fun today than I'd have liked."

Ranoku responded with a nod, only to be interrupted when Ilohe landed on the railing next to them; she now had a purple monster-like Pokemon with piercing red eyes and a wide, malicious grin on its face, as well as a tall, purple cobra-like Pokemon. "I don't think so!" she shouted angrily. "I will not let you leave until I've beaten you once and for all!"

Demitri pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. "Please tell me that every other rival isn't as insane as she is..."

"Nah, that's just her," Ranoku responded as-a-matter-of-factly, the cobra abruptly shooting forth a large spray of needles.

The trio quickly hid behind their pile in an attempt to avoid, though this didn't stop the otherwise flimsy stack from giving way. Several needles made their way through, one of them puncturing a spot mere inches from the top of Anne's head and causing her to squeak. "GET US OUT OF HERE!"

"One air lift, coming up," Ranoku responded, quickly fishing out another Poke Ball and tossing it into the air. The device burst open, revealing a rather large, quadrupedal, blue-skinned dragon that landed with a crash on the ground in the walkway. Ilohe glanced at it with a blink as Ranoku called, "Salamence, clear 'em out with an Earthquake!"

He quickly grabbed a hold of Anne's arm as he and Demitri hopped onto the dragon's back, Salamence quickly plowing its claws into the ground and generating a sizeable tremor that began causing the ground to crack and give way, Ilohe knocked off balance slightly as her Pokemon began struggling to stay aloft. Salamence itself began beating its wings powerfully to get off of the ground, finally managing to pass right past the open ceiling and leaving Ilohe screaming back in anger amidst a slowly crumbling building. Demitri looked back with a slight wince as he saw it fall apart.

"I thought you didn't want to destroy that place."

"I changed my mind."

"What about the ghosts?"

"Turns out it was just Ilohe giving me that creepy chill down my spine, there were no ghosts."

"...uh huh."


	13. Pewter City

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 13-Pewter City

By the time Demitri and co. arrived in Pewter City, night had fallen and the moon was high in the sky. Even at this late hour, people wandered about, minding their own business. The trio currently wandered through the large town as well, Ranoku fishing through his pack for another energy drink. "So...where are we staying exactly?" Demitri finally asked.

Ranoku opened his drink at this, glancing at the teen. "At a Pokemon Center, of course."

"Ah." They continued walking on silently, Demitri staring ahead with a blank expression. It was only when Anne glanced at him cautiously that he blinked somewhat drearily.

"...no way. How can you NOT know what a Pokemon Center is?" Anne asked incredulously, setting her hands on her hips. "I didn't think Pallet was THAT much of a hillbilly hideaway!"

Demitri cast the little girl a rather annoyed glance before answering. "I'm not going to say I do know what they are, because that would be lying. On the other hand, I'm not going to say I don't know what they are because I've heard my parents use the term extensively." It was Anne's turn to stare at Demitri rather blankly. "...but I don't know what EXACTLY they are."

"Then you're in luck," Ranoku answered, pointing forward. Demitri's attention went to a rather large, circular building a short distance away with a large, Poke Ball-like structure on the top. "That's a Pokemon Center."

"It's big," Demitri commented as they began approaching.

Ranoku nodded while taking a sip of his drink. "Pokemon Centers are a Trainer's best friend after the Pokemon themselves. They act as a motel for Trainers to stay in during their journey, a hospital for when you need to heal your sick or injured Pokemon, a method of getting in touch with others, meeting new people..."

By this time, the trio had entered into the main, high-tech lobby where, true to Ranoku's words, Demitri saw many a Trainer around, some with their own Pokemon. On one side of the wall was a variety of computer-looking devices with what Demitri recognized as Poke Ball transfer machines and phone receivers; Professor Oak had one of those back in his lab.

The trio approached the front desk, where a pink-haired lady in a nurse's outfit was waiting. She smiled before saying, "Hello, and welcome to the Pewter City Pokemon Center! How may I help you?"

Ranoku stepped forward, clearing his throat slightly. "Yes, we need a room for the night."

The nurse nodded and fished about under the desk before pulling out a key. She handed it to Ranoku, saying, "There you are."

"Thank you," the teen said with a nod before leading Demitri and Anne down a different doorway, which led down a path with many different doors, each of them numbered.

"She's nice," Demitri finally commented, earning a nod from Ranoku.

"They normally are." Demitri blinked slightly, almost beginning to inquire about Ranoku's usage of the word "they" before the trio arrived at what he assumed to be their room. Inside, it was rather quaint and homely-looking, with four bunk beds lined up against the walls, two on each side. A few drawers were set up in between the bunk beds on the wall, underneath a window.

"It's just a little small," Demitri remarked with a shrug as they began setting their things down.

Anne cleared her throat, turning to the two teens. "Now, I'm gonna change, so if anyone needs me, don't."

The little girl proceeded to leave the room, Demitri rolling his eyes and glancing back at Ranoku, who had sat down on one of the beds. "Alright Demitri, tomorrow we start your training. You can't just go and fight the Gym Leader without proper preparations."

"Understandable," Demitri responded with a nod as Ranoku began walking out of the room.

"Get a good night's sleep. I'm going out." Before Demitri could ask any questions, Ranoku had left, soon replaced by Anne, now in a pink nightgown.

The teen glanced at her with a contemplative expression, Anne shrugging. "Don't look at me, I still haven't gotten him figured out." She proceeded to flop down onto one of the beds, murmuring, "He's just one of those guys you're never able to figure out...and when you think you have, you've only gotten yourself deeper into the maze."

"That was uncharacteristically poetic," Demitri commented blankly, earning a glare from Anne.

"What's THAT supposed to mean?"

Back outside of the Pokemon Center, Ranoku had began wandering around towards the back, soon arriving in a darker portion of the grounds and leaning against a wall. He took a sip of his drink. "You're kinda late."

"Sorry, sorry, I was held up," Ranoku responded with a wave of his hand, his attention brought to a figure leaning against the wall a short distance away, his features hidden by the darkness. The sole exception was the figure's long, dark green hair.

"I guess I can take your word for it," the figure mumbled lowly, giving a slight sigh. "You've got it, right?"

Ranoku frowned and turned away from the figure. "You expect too much out of me. I'll have it, don't worry."

"Apparently we've been expecting too much out of you for too long then. 2 years too long," the figure responded with a thick layer of sarcasm before glancing at Ranoku slightly.

The teen shrugged nonchalantly before taking a sip of his drink. "So it's taking me a while, big deal...I've got other stuff to do too ya know."

"And this isn't priority?"

"It is, don't worry...it's just been hard as hell to find it."

The figure stepped forward from their own spot. "Well...you'd best hurry up. Your time is running short. And you know what'll happen if you don't finish what we've instructed of you."

Ranoku looked down slightly, not paying any attention as the figure vanished, suddenly taking to the sky amidst a mechanical-sounding groan and what looked to be a disc-like object. The teen finally began walking off himself, depositing the empty can in a nearby waste bin.

**-The following day-**

Demitri had been sleeping quite soundly throughout the entire night, occasionally exhaling lightly to give off signs that he was awake. He had taken the top bunk by Anne's request (he didn't care to know why). He was completely unaware of Ranoku slowly poking his head over the side of his bed, a sloppy grin plastered onto his face as he lifted one of his hands; in it was a blow horn. He slowly pointed it at Demitri's head, the teen's only warning being when Anne whispered somewhat loudly. "Can't you hurry it up?"

"Nngh...?" Demitri very slowly opened his eyes, turning his head about to see the funnel pointed right at him. A press of the button, and a loud, rather obnoxious squeal was blared right in his face, causing the teen to shout in anger and roll backwards, thumping his head against the wall in the process. "GAH! DAMMIT!"

Ranoku barely managed to stifle his hysterical giggles as Demitri rubbed the back of his head, casting a death glare at Ranoku. "I oughta rip you a new one for that..."

"Hey, at least you're awake," Ranoku responded, setting the blow horn in his pack and getting down from his perch on the side of the bed. "Now we can begin our training."

Demitri continued to stare at Ranoku irritably, rubbing his eyes and groaning as he slid out of bed, snatching his Pokedex out of a drawer and looking in it for the time. 5:45 in the morning. Fantastic. "C'mon, don't stand around all day, we gotta get moving!" Ranoku remarked, marching out of the room as Demitri cast a tired glance at Anne.

"I feel your pain, he did the same thing to me," the little girl mumbled with a sigh before following him out.

Within minutes, Demitri had managed to change and joined Ranoku and Anne outside of the Pokemon Center, amidst what looked to be a training ground that a few others were using. "Now then," Ranoku remarked, glancing at Demitri slightly. "Pewter City's Gym Leader is an expert on Rock-type Pokemon. Know that much first."

Demitri nodded in understanding as Ranoku pulled out a Poke Ball, tossing it between his hands for a moment. "Soooooo, let's see you up against another Rock-type." With this comment, Ranoku tossed the Poke Ball into the air, the device bursting open and revealing a rather large, spherical Pokemon seemingly covered in rock. The only part of it that didn't resemble a giant boulder was its stubby arms, legs, and head.

_Golem, the Megaton Pokemon. The evolved form of Graveler. Its boulder-like body is extremely hard. It can easily withstand dynamite blasts without taking damage._

Demitri stared up at the Rock-type with a blank expression, uttering, "...are the Gym Leader's Pokemon honestly THIS powerful?"

"Maybe, maybe not," Ranoku responded with a shrug, turning around. "Either way, I've got things to do, so I'll be seeing you later."

The teen blinked slightly, shouting, "HEY! You can't just expect to leave me here with this thing all by myself, do you?"

"That's exactly what I expect!" Ranoku called back as-a-matter-of-factly, waving a hand about before departing into the city.

Demitri stared after Ranoku with a blank expression, slowly turning to Anne, who shrugged. "Hey, I've already finished all my preparations. You're on your own."

"Hey wait a minu-" Demitri was unable to finish his sentence as Anne dashed off, leaving him to stare at the Golem as it slowly staggered towards him, giving a low grunt. The teen sweatdropped slightly, uttering, "...fuck my life..."

**-Meanwhile-**

Ranoku had, during this time, arrived in front of a large, rather fancy-looking building. The sign at the front read "Pewter City Museum of Science", though Ranoku paid it no heed as he entered the building, approaching the desk. The scientist on the other side of the desk looked up and asked, "How may I help you?"

"I'm here to see the head scientist," the teen explained, prompting a blink from the other scientist.

"Oh? And what business do you have with-"

"He'll know me, don't worry," the teen responded, waving a hand about. The scientist on the other end fell silent for a moment before departing, soon being replaced with a different labcoat-wearing figure.

"Oh! Ranoku!" said scientist responded, smiling slightly. "I'm glad you came!"

The teen nodded in response. "You had something to show me?"

The scientist nodded and left the desk for a moment, soon returning with some sort of casing; inside was an oval-shaped lump of rock, extremely smooth and glossy. Ranoku leaned forward with a blink, mumbling lowly, "Shiiiiiiiiny..."

"It's a piece of solidified amber," the scientist explained, setting it on the desk. "My colleagues and I believe it may have Pokemon DNA within it!"

Ranoku was torn from his momentary stupor and looked up at the scientist. "Pokemon DNA?"

"Yes," the scientist responded, leaning forward slightly. "DNA of a Pokemon long since extinct!"

The teen fell silent for a moment, looking away. "Wow. That's quite a find." He looked back at the scientist, murmuring, "And you wanted me to see it becaaaauuuuuse...?"

"I've heard there is a lab in Cinnabar Island that has been working in Pokemon cloning," the scientist explained, leaning forward slightly. "If you could run this over there real quick and give them this amber, they'll be able to use the DNA within it to create a clone of whatever Pokemon was fossilized!"

Ranoku's eyes widened slightly, and he nodded. "Basically...we'll be bringing back a Pokemon that hasn't been seen since the ancient times?" He took a moment to think this over. "...sounds fun! I'll do it."

He proceeded to pick up the casing, the scientist adding, "You're free to do with the cloned Pokemon whatever you see fit. All we really want to know is whether it worked and what Pokemon came from it."

"Gotcha," the teen responded with a nod, setting the case in his pack and exitting the building. He didn't get very far before reaching into his pack again, pulling out another Poke Ball and unleashing the blue dragon he had used to escape from the Viridian Forest prior. The creature glanced at him as Ranoku hopped on its back, saying, "Alright Salamence, we're headed to Cinnabar Island. Let's get over there quick, don't wanna leave the kids alone for too long."

The dragon roared in response, quickly taking to the skies and shooting off into the air, quickly disappearing over the horizon to the south.


	14. Making Prehistory

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 14-Making Prehistory

"Here we are...Pewter City Gym." Anne looked up at the rather earthy-looking building, which had several boulders protruding from the walls and a few more scattered around the entrance. The girl pushed open the double doors, entering what looked to be an uncharacteristically clean hallway with a receptionist's desk on the other side. Another pair of double doors was next to said desk.

Anne approached the desk, where a brown clothed man was sitting. He looked down at Anne, murmuring, "Can I help you?"

"I'm here to challenge the Gym," Anne responded, the receptionist looking her over.

"...huh. You seem a little young to be challenging Gyms!"

"WHAT WAS THAT?" she shouted angrily, grabbing the scruff of his neck and pulling him down to her eye level, growling.

"N-nothing, nothing!" the receptionist stammered, lifting both hands as Anne let go of him. He panted slightly, then motioned to the other pair of double doors. "The Gym Leader is waiting for you past there."

Anne's enraged expression turned back into one of childish innocence. "Thank you!" She skipped through the double doors, pushing them open and peeking inside.

The ceilings were very tall, featuring several lamps hanging above amongst rafters and shining light down onto the dirt field. Several boulders were strewn in places all over the field. Anne looked around slightly, a voice calling, "Welcome to the Pewter Gym!"

The little girl's attention went to the other side of the Gym, where a man was standing at the edge of the battlefield; he had tanned skin with spiky, dark brown hair, and an orange long-sleeved shirt and dark green jeans. Anne glanced at the man, calling, "Hey! Are you the Gym Leader?"

"That's correct," he responded with a nod. "My name's Brock, and I'm the leader of the Pewter Gym. You're here for a challenge?"

Anne nodded. "My name is Anne! I've come from Goldenrod City to participate in the Indigo League!"

Brock tilted his head to one side in curiosity. "Oh, you're all the way from Johto...? This ought to be fun."

Both combatants gave off a confident smirk as the receptionist stepped in between the two, clearing his throat. "This is an official Gym battle between Anne, from Goldenrod City, versus Brock, the Pewter City Gym Leader! Both combatants will use two Pokemon; the first to knock out both of their opponent's Pokemon will be declared the winner! Are both Trainers, ready?"

Anne lifted up a Poke Ball, smirking widely. "Ready as I'll ever be!"

"Likewise," Brock responded.

The receptionist stepped back so as not to be in the way on the field, and shouted, "Begin!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Anne vs. Gym Leader Brock **  
**Location: Pewter Gym **  
**Single Battle**

"Alright!" Anne shouted, hurling her Poke Ball forward. "Let's get started!" The Ball burst open, abruptly revealing some sort of flower-like Pokemon; its body seemed to be comprised completely of rather skinny roots, with the exception of the leaves on its sides which seemed to act as hands, and its yellow, bell-shaped head. A pair of beady, black eyes were positioned on its head.

_Bellsprout, the Flower Pokemon. Prefers hot and humid places. It ensnares tiny insects with its vines and devours them._

Brock furrowed his brow slightly. "Hm, looks like you've done your homework." He hurled his own Poke Ball forth, shouting, "But you'll need more than a type advantage to win against me!" His own Ball burst open, abruptly revealing an orb-like Pokemon seemingly composed of gray rocks, with a pair of arms and hands extending from its sides. The rock-like Pokemon opened its eyes and let out a gutteral shout.

_Geodude, the Rock Pokemon. Found in fields and mountains. Mistaking them for boulders, people often step or trip on them._

Both Pokemon stared off for a few seconds before Anne pointed forward, shouting, "Now, Bellsprout! Hit it with a Vine Whip!"

Bellsprout lifted its leaves up; suddenly, two vines were flung out from underneath, lashing out towards Geodude. Brock continued to smile back, and called, "Geodude, block it with a Defense Curl!"

With this command, the Rock Pokemon abruptly curled itself up tightly, putting its arms over its face and taking on a more round form. The vines impacted directly, sending Geodude rolling backwards given its new shape, and causing it to land with a thud against one of the boulders. "Now, unleash a Tackle!" Brock commanded, pointing forward.

Geodude was quick to respond, quickly pushing off of the rock behind it and beginning to bound towards Bellsprout, its shape causing it to begin rolling like a ball and bouncing slightly. Anne blinked in shock, quickly shouting, "Bellsprout, avoid, quick!"

The Flower Pokemon retracted the vines it had used to whack Geodude, planting them on the ground and abruptly using them to catapult itself into the air, flying right over Geodude. The Rock-type quickly planted its fingers into the ground to anchor it to a halt, kicking up a slight dust cloud in the process and allowing it to notice the still airborne Bellsprout. Anne managed a slight smirk and shouted, "Now, spray some Stun Spore!"

Bellsprout tilted its head back, seemingly taking a breath before abruptly spewing a rather sizable cloud of yellow dust. Geodude was unable to move out of the way before being impacted, causing it to cough for a moment before shaking itself off, the cloud dissipating. Brock furrowed his brow in thought. "Hm...Geodude, Rock Tomb!"

With this command, Geodude slowly lifted up its hands, clenching them into fists before slamming them into the ground; several boulders shot out of the ground around Bellsprout, who finally landed on the ground, looking around at the rocks surrounding it. A slight smirk from Geodude before Bellsprout extended its vine again, quickly planting them on the top of the rocks before using them to catapult itself into the air. The rocks had, however, immediately fallen inwards where Bellsprout was previously; the shift of position momentarily knocked Bellsprout off balance, enabling for Geodude to propel itself forward with its hands on the ground, ramming into Bellsprout and knocking both to the ground. "Gotcha!"

Bellsprout slowly staggered back to its feet, visibly shaken as Geodude steadied itself as well, giving a slight shudder. Anne grunted slightly, pointing forward and calling, "Wrap it!"

The vines extended from behind Bellsprout and lashed out at Geodude again, though this time they wrapped around its forearms and began dragging it towards the Flower Pokemon. Within an instant, however, Geodude had grabbed a hold of the vines around its arms and yanked Bellsprout towards it, sending the Grass-type flying towards it. Brock smiled, calling, "One more Tackle ought to do it!"

Geodude planted its hands in the ground in preparation to ram forward; however, it seemed to lock up, its eyes widening. Brock blinked slightly, noticing the Rock Pokemon shudder. "What's wrong?"

Anne herself managed a smirk. "Heh...that Stun Spore wasn't just for nothing!" She pointed forward, calling, "One more Vine Whip, Bellsprout! Let's make it count!"

The vines wrapped around Geodude's arms loosened up, retracting slightly as Bellsprout continued to fly forth from the earlier momentum. The vines coiled up in front of Geodude's face, the Rock-type's eyes widening as it noticed the attack being prepared in front of it. Once Bellsprout had gotten close enough, it abruptly smashed the coiled up vines into Geodude, the built up force sending it rocketing backwards, abruptly slamming into one of the boulders and smashing it to pieces. Brock's eyes widened as Anne pumped a fist forward, shouting, "Yes! Gotcha!"

The dust cloud dissipated, revealing a now unconscious Geodude, mumbling lowly to itself. "Geodude is unable to battle!" the referee called.

Brock proceeded to return Geodude to its Ball, smiling slightly as he put it away. "Well, you're pretty talented, aren't ya? Especially for one your age."

"Thaaaaaanks," Anne responded with a chuckle and wide smile. "I have lots of expert training."

The Gym Leader chuckled, pulling out one more Poke Ball. "I'm glad...but just so you're aware...I won't be letting you win that easily, especially with this last Pokemon."

Anne and Bellsprout both retained an offensive position, the little girl's smile remaining broad. "I'm prepared! You're going down!"

**-Later-**

The sky had by this point turned a brilliant orange, the sun beginning to disappear over the horizon in Pewter. At this time, the shadow of Salamence appeared in the sky above the Pokemon Center, the dragon landing with a thud in front of the doors. A few of the passerby looked around with a curious expression as Ranoku slid off of the dragon's back, stretching slightly. "Aaahhh, that took a little longer than I expected...we'll need to work on speed runs later."

Salamence let out a slight huff and exhaled some smoke from its nostrils before being returned. Ranoku began wandering towards the back of the Pokemon Center, murmuring lowly, "Hm...better check on Demitri. Hopefully Golem didn't rough him up too badly."

The training grounds looked rather beaten up, various parts of the ground cracked and some bits of equipment smashed. Ranoku blinked slightly. "...I knew I should've picked someone less rowdy..."

The teen's attention went to a nearby bench, where Demitri was sitting down with a slight pant. His somewhat injured Porygon was laying in his lap, resting. "Hey!" Demitri looked up slightly as Ranoku approached. "What happened here?"

"Your Golem went on a rampage," Demitri mumbled flatly, reaching into his jacket pocket. "Oh yeah, the Pokemon Center is fining us for property damage. Not my fault."

Demitri handed an envelope to Ranoku, the teen snatching it up and mumbling, "I'll deal with that later. Right now, I need to show you guys something."

The teen reached into his pocket and pulled out a Poke Ball, proceeding to return the nearby Golem that had also been leisurely resting. Demitri blinked slightly. "You have something to show us...?"

Ranoku nodded. "Yeah, but I gotta wait until Anne gets ba-"

"HERE I AM!" The duo turned around slightly to find Anne running towards them, pausing for a moment to pant and keep her head bowed down. "I'm...I'm back!"

Demitri slowly got to his feet, his Porygon opening its eyes somewhat groggily and shaking slightly. "How'd it go...?"

"See for yourself!" Anne respodned, reaching into her pack and pulling out a pink case. She opened it up, allowing for a look inside; at one corner of the case was a small gray, hexagon-shaped object. "The Boulder Badge!"

"Nice job," Ranoku remarked with a smile, patting her head. "Wish I had been there."

"Which reminds me," Anne mused, putting the case away and folding her arms expectantly. "Where WERE you all day?"

The teen waved a hand about. "I'm getting to that, don't worry." He cleared his throat slightly, then folded his arms with a smirk. "I went to the Pewter Museum of Science."

Demitri blinked slightly, his tone taking on an unusually disappointed sound. "Wait, you went to the museum? Without me?"

"Don't get your pocket protector in a knot, you can go later," Anne mused flatly, Demitri glancing at her with an eye roll. "So what was so interesting that was there?"

Ranoku's smirk widened as he reached into his pack, pulling out a Poke Ball. "They gave me a little something that I took down to Cinnibar in the south...and I got this in return."

"An ordinary Poke Ball?" Demitri mumbled bluntly, furrowing his brow.

"It's what's IN the Poke Ball that's special," Ranoku responded, waggling a finger in Demitri's face. "It is...a prehistoric Pokemon!"

Demitri and Anne both blinked in surprise. "Prehistoric...like a dinosaur?" the little girl mumbled with a slightly anxious expression.

"Indeed!" Ranoku remarked, pointing to the sky. "Inside of this Poke Ball is a Pokemon that hasn't been seen since ancient times! Truly a momentous event!"

The other two exchanged another glance as Ranoku leaned forward slightly. "Wanna see it?"

"I'm not so sure that's a very good idea," Demitri responded somewhat hastily. "Bringing a dinosaur Pokemon into the modern world so quickly won't yield very good results..."

"Nonsense!" Ranoku responded, waving a hand around. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"We get eaten," Anne responded plainly, now hiding behind Demitri. "And many other things."

The older teen glanced at her with a glazed expression. "You worry too much." With this comment, he tossed the Poke Ball into the air, calling, "Let's see what we've got here!"

The Ball burst open, abruptly revealing a rather large Pokemon; it seemed to be some sort of pterodactyl, covered in gray skin with purple skin flaps in between its reptilian wings. It had a somewhat sizable jaw and two horns sticking from its head, a forked tail, and rather sharp talons.

_Aerodactyl, the Fossil Pokemon. A ferocious, prehistoric Pokemon that goes for the enemy's throat with its serrated saw-like fangs._

Demitri and Anne stared up at the winged dinosaur as Ranoku turned to them with a smile. "Eh? Eh? What do ya think?"

"Put it back!" Anne squeaked, hiding behind Demitri again.

Ranoku frowned slightly as the Aerodactyl looked around slightly. "Why?"

"Didn't you hear the writer's description? That thing's deadly!" Anne squeaked.

"Not to mention having it around all of these unfamiliar settings is probably gonna spook it big time," Demitri added, though he seemed noticeably more composed than Anne.

Ranoku rolled his eyes slightly. "Oh come on, just because it sounds deadly doesn't make it a threat to u-"

Ranoku's comment was cut off when Aerodactyl let out a rather loud shriek, causing all three to cover their ears with a wince. "What's it doing?" Anne shouted, though it was drowned out amidst the Fossil Pokemon's shriek.

Before any response could be given, Aerodactyl flapped its wings about and abruptly took off into the air, shooting into the city. The trio looked after it with a blink, Ranoku mumbling, "That could've gone better."

This comment was met with a sharp nudge to the side from Anne in irritation, Demitri rushing after where it flew off and glancing at the duo. "Come on, we have to go after it!"

Anne and Ranoku exchanged a glance, the little girl sighing. "Alright, but if it comes down to it I'm not going to fight against it!"

"Fair enough," Ranoku responded, grabbing Anne by her forearm and beginning to follow Demitri through the city, dragging Anne along while listening to the shrieks of Aerodactyle echoing through the streets.


	15. Flight of the Aerodactyl

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 15-Flight of the Aerodactyl

It wasn't terribly hard to keep up with Aerodactyl; its constant screeching made it easy to track. Unfortunately, it also attracted a lot of unwanted attention, other people now screaming in terror and running about. "Wonderful...now we're going to get in trouble for unleashing a monstrous Pokemon on the city," Demitri uttered in irritation, glancing at Ranoku. "Thanks a lot."

"It's only 'getting in trouble' if you're caught," the teen responded as-a-matter-of-factly, turning around slightly. "Hey, there it is!"

The trio turned around, finding Aerodactyl alighting itself on a fairly large and fancy-looking building; the Pewter Museum. "Well, at least it stopped flying..." Anne murmured, glancing at Ranoku. "Return that thing before anyone see-"

Her comment was cut short by the sound of cars coming to a skidding halt; the trio turned around to find police cars and a news van arriving at the scene. Demitri facepalmed, uttering, "Now how are we supposed to catch that thing and NOT get in trouble?"

Ranoku furrowed his brow slightly, looking around. "Aahh...the Museum has a back entrance. Come on."

When no one was looking, Ranoku led the trio towards the front doors, quickly slipping inside and leaning against the walls to ensure they weren't seen. "Alright, let's-"

"RANOKU!" All three jumped and turned to the source; the scientist that Ranoku had received then fossilized amber from in the first place was staring at them with a mixture of fear and anger. "What's going on? What is a prehistoric Pokemon doing on our roof?"

A few moments passed in silence, the teen finally giving out a weak smile and lifting both hands up. "Uuhh...I brought you the Pokemon that was cloned from that amber...hehe..."

Demitri furrowed his brow and glanced at the scientist. "Wait, he did this as some sort of errand for YOU?"

"Are you crazy?" Anne shouted in irritation, folding her arms and tapping a foot impatiently on the ground. "I admit Ranoku's skilled, but he's not what I'd call 'responsible'!"

The teen frowned slightly and turned away, sulking comically in a corner. "Gee, thanks guys..."

Demitri, Anne, and the scientist stared at Ranoku for a few moments, the latter shaking his head. "Look, I asked him to go to Cinnabar to clone that thing so that we could study it. I had assumed he'd come right back to give it to us."

Both Trainers facepalmed slightly, cut off by another screech from above. All four looked up, the scientist looking down at them. "Look, I don't care what you do with it, I just want that thing out of here!"

"Consider it done," Ranoku remarked, standing up. "We'll go through the back exit and lure it out back so no one notices."

The group nodded as Ranoku led Demitri and Anne towards the back, finally arriving in the garden and looking up; fortunately for them, Aerodactyl was still on its perch and screeching up a storm. "So...how should we go about doing this?"

Ranoku rubbed his chin in thought. "Hm...good question...for that, I need brain juice." He proceeded to reach into his pack, opening an energy drink and sipping at it in thought. Demitri and Anne cast each other an unimpressed glance and heaved a sigh.

Back in the front, police officers and their Pokemon kept eyes trained on the Fossil Pokemon, while civilians had began gathering from nearby to watch. Among them were Zack and Hayden, the two looking up at Aerodactyl with a curious expression. "Whoa! What's that?" the younger remarked in shock.

Zack furrowed his brow slightly. "Not sure...I've never seen any Pokemon like that before."

"It's an Aerodactyl." Both boys blinked and turned around, noticing a teenage girl with long black hair, a longsleeved black undershirt, blue tank top, and black bell-bottoms. Both boys blinked as she approached, arms folded. "They're an extinct species."

"Extinct?" Zack echoed, frowning slightly, looking back at it. "I think 'extinct' means that there aren't supposed to be any left. Then what do you call THAT up there?"

The girl shot Zack an annoyed glare. "Can it little boy. I'm just as curious about that as you are."

All three slowly glanced back at the Aerodactyl as, back in the garden, Ranoku had set up a ladder leading to the roof. "Alright, we need to get up there and entice it to come back down."

"I'm not nudging an inch!" Anne hissed, quickly retreating to a nearby bush.

Demitri and Ranoku glanced at her, the former teen casting a stare at Ranoku. "Since YOU got us into this mess, I'd suggest you do it, but knowing that you'd probably just screw things up further, I'll go."

"Why's everyone making fun of me todaaaaaaaaay?" Ranoku whined, tilting his head back as Anne dragged him into the bush.

Demitri had, during this time, began clambering up the ladder, using the arched roof to his advantage in order to remain hidden and slowly sidling towards the Fossil Pokemon as it continued to screech and flap its wings about. He let out a slight sigh, his normally calm demeanor faltering for a mere moment. "Nice Aerodactyl...c'mere..."

His words caught its attention, and the Fossil Pokemon turned around slightly to him. Demitri went to extend a hand, only to hear a voice from the front. "Fire the net now!"

The teen's eyes widened and he quickly extended a hand, grabbing a hold of Aerodactyl's tail and pulling it from his perch, right as said net flew overhead, completely missing. The Fossil Pokemon had landed on the perch right next to Demitri and prepared a screech, however, quick thinking had enabled Demitri to grab the net as it flew by and tie Aerodactyl's mouth shut to prevent any further noise. "It went out back!"

Demitri's eyes widened; he needed to return it pronto. He quickly grabbed Aerodactyl's Poke Ball and turned to the Fossil Pokemon, only now taking notice of the trembling it had been going through and the winced expression. The teen fell silent for a split second, blinking. _"Is it...scared?"_

With this thought, Demitri slowly extended a hand towards Aerodactyl, gently rubbing its neck; the Fossil Pokemon had blinked and glanced at him, forcing Demitri to shrink back ever so slightly. "Calm down...we're going to get you out of here."

By this time, police officials had began filing into the back, Demitri managing to return the Fossil Pokemon just in time before they noticed. He pocketed the device as an officer clambered up, noticing him. Thinking quickly, Demitri had already dropped into a crouching position, looking around in a panic. "Oh, officer! Is it gone?" Even if he were normally calm and collected, Demitri was a pretty good actor.

Said officer looked around slightly, frowning. "What're you doing up here, boy?"

Demitri looked up and reached into his pocket, filtering around and managing to pull out a case similar to the one Anne had shown them earlier; the exception being that it was a metallic black and not pink. "My Badge case. That Pokemon must've stolen it because it was shiny."

The officer frowned slightly. "Well get down from here kid, you could've almost gotten killed!"

"Yes sir," Demitri responded, climbing down after the officer as a few more began going through the bushes, managing to find Ranoku and Anne.

"Hey! What're YOU two doing here?"

The teen looked up from his trembling and wide-eyed student. "Hiding."

The officer furrowed his brow slightly as another returned. "There's no sign of it. It must've flown off."

This was met with a sigh from the others, who looked at Demitri, Ranoku, and Anne. "Get outta here kids, we need to investigate this whole affair."

"And we'll leave you to do that," Demitri murmured, hastily beginning to push Ranoku and Anne away with a nod. "Good day, officers."

"It's nighttime," Ranoku pointed out plainly as Demitri shoved them away.

"Not the point..." he uttered in irritation, the three of them stepping out from behind the museum. He managed to pull out Aerodactyl's Poke Ball, murmuring, "I managed to get it back."

Ranoku went to reach for it, however, Demitri held it out of reach. "You will NOT go about letting it loose again, got it?"

The older teen sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'm not stupid."

"That's debatable," Demitri responded flatly, placing it back in Ranoku's hand.

During this time, Zack, Hayden, and the girl had noticed the trio, staring in shock. "That's Demitri!" Zack growled with a frown. "What's HE doing there?"

The girl blinked slightly and looked down. "You know them...?"

Zack and Hayden slowly glanced at the taller girl with a blink. "Yeah...the brown-haired guy with the glasses. Do you?"

"I'm more acquainted with his goofy-looking 'mentor'," the girl mumbled with distaste, sighing.

Zack and Hayden exchanged a glance, a wily smirk appearing on both their faces. "If you wouldn't mind...telling us all you know about that other Trainer that's with him..."

"...you'll tell me all about his bothersome new student," the girl finished, exchanging their evil smirk and extending a hand. "I can sense a partnership forming."

Zack met her hand as well, grasping and shaking it. "Zack Lasat."

The girl shook as well, nodding. "Ilohe Dysos."

**-The following day-**

"So it was just scared?"

Demitri nodded in understanding; the trio now stood at the back of the Pokemon Center, discussing last night's events. "Yes. I'd be scared too if I were thrust into an unfamiliar world with crazy people shouting and chasing me."

The teen sighed lowly and heaved a shrug. "But I managed to calm it down by stroking and petting it all gentle and stuff."

"That's what SHE said." Demitri and Anne slowly glanced at Ranoku, who had been sipping from his drink. He blinked and lowered it, shrugging innocently. "What? You set me up from that one."

"BESIDE the point..." the teen uttered, shaking his head. "Regardless, the scientist said we could do whatever we wanted with it, so..."

Demitri was cut off when Ranoku cleared his throat, planting a Poke Ball in his hand. "You keep it."

The teen blinked and looked down at the device in curiosity; it was Aerodactyl's Poke Ball, no doubt about it. "And...you're just giving it to me like that?"

"I mulled it over last night," Ranoku answered, tilting his head to one side. "You knew how to handle it better, and by this point you've earned its trust. It's only sensible you get it."

Demitri fell silent, looking down at the Poke Ball again before glancing back at Ranoku with a nod. "Alright, I understand. Thank you."

Ranoku smiled and nodded back. "Now that that's out of the way..." The teen pulled Demitri towards him, an arm around his neck and a finger pointed to the sky. "I think we have put one last thing we need to do before moving on past Pewter City, and that's YOU getting YOUR Gym Badge!"

The teen nodded slightly, Anne folding her arms with a slight smirk. "Consider yourself lucky you got that Aerodactyl, you need two Pokemon to participate in the Gym..."

"Thanks for the information I could've used yesterday," Demitri uttered flatly, glaring at Anne who shrugged innocently. "Now if we're done talking...I'd like to head over to the Gym so we could get this over with."

"Understood!" Ranoku finished, proceeding to drag Demitri and Anne away. "Next stop, Pewter City Gym!"


	16. Battle for the Boulder Badge

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 16-Battle for the Boulder Badge

Demitri, Ranoku, and Anne now stood in front of the building Anne stood before the previous day, Demitri scanning the front sign with an attentive stare. "What're you doing...?" Anne murmured bluntly.

Demitri glanced back at her. "Going over my strategy."

"Pewter City's Gym Leader uses Rock-types," Ranoku explained, folding his arms. "That puts Aerodactyl at a disadvantage, first off."

Demitri nodded in understanding, the duo entering the building and finding themselves at the receptionist's desk. Demitri stepped forward as the man on the other side looked up. "I'm here for a Gym battle."

The receptionist nodded and stood up. "Right this way." He pushed open the doors, allowing for Demitri to see the dirt and rocky flooring. He furrowed his brow and took his place on one side of the arena, the receptionist murmuring, "The Gym Leader will be right with you."

Demitri nodded in understanding; this was, however, quickly cut off by the sound of another voice on the other side of the room. "Hello there!" Demitri turned around slightly, taking notice of the tan-skinned individual on the other end of the room; the Gym Leader Brock. The Leader's gaze traveled to Anne for a moment, the teen murmuring, "A friend of yours?"

Anne wrinkled her brow and looked away slightly. "Something like that..."

Brock nodded, glancing at Demitri. "And who's my challenger this time around?"

The teen nodded, clearing his throat. "Demitri Douniiru of Pallet Town."

Brock furrowed his brow and smiled wider. "Oohh, you're the new Douniiru kid...?" Ignoring Demitri's grimace, Brock looked away slightly and rubbed his chin. "I would've expected you to have gotten here earlier than now, but, well, better late than never, hm?"

"Yeah," Demitri mumbled, pulling out a Poke Ball. "Let's just get this show on the road please?"

"You got it," Brock responded, pulling forth a Poke Ball.

The receptionist now stood between them, lifting up two flags. "This is an official Gym battle between Demitri Douniiru, from Pallet Town, and Brock, the Pewter City Gym Leader! Both combatants will use two Pokemon; the first to knock out both of their opponent's Pokemon will be declared the winner! Are both Trainers, ready?"

Demitri nodded, gripping his Poke Ball. "Pretty much."

Brock wound up his arm in preparation for a throw to show that he was ready. "Begin!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Gym Leader Brock**  
** Location: Pewter City Gym **  
**Single Battle**

Demitri and Brock both tossed forward their Poke Balls; amidst the columns of light, Porygon materialized on Demitri's side with a beep and shiver, while Geodude appeared on Brock's end. Demitri furrowed his brow as Brock pointed forward, calling, "Geodude, start things off with a Tackle!"

The Rock-type obeyed, pushing off of the ground with its hands and curling itself into a ball, headed straight for Porygon. It hastily ducked underneath the strike, Geodude unfurling just in time for Porygon to whirl around. "Hit it with a Psybeam!"

Porygon abruptly shot forth a blast of rainbow colored energy, Geodude crossing its arms in front of its face to block as the force of the blow sent it flying backwards, rolling to a slow halt as Porygon descended. Brock furrowed his brow, shouting, "Defense Curl, now!"

With a roar, Geodude curled itself into a ball, Demitri furrowing his brow as the rock-like Pokemon abruptly shot forward for another Tackle, this time beginning to bounce slightly from the uneven ground. Demitri blinked, calling, "Psybeam, again!"

Another blast was fired from Porygon's snout; despite it hitting directly, Geodude was not deterred and slammed straight into Porygon, sending it flying backwards in a crashing heap while Geodude itself skidded to a halt, smirking. Demitri blinked in shock at this, Ranoku calling, "Rock-types are known for their naturally high defenses, Demitri; head-on assaults won't work as well!"

"Thank you for the information I already knew," Demitri mumbled flatly, rolling his eyes as Porygon levitated back up, shaking itself about. "I'm going to have to attack in a more intricate fashion. Porygon, Sharpen!"

With this command, Porygon let out a loud beep as its body let out a shimmer. The blunt ends of its snout, tail, and feet abruptly shot out into what looked to be a series of blades, giving Porygon a fairly more threatening and "pointy" appearance. Brock chuckled slightly, murmuring, "That won't really help you...Geodude, another Tackle!"

The Rock-type abruptly shot towards Porygon once again, the Virtual Pokemon bowing slightly in preparation to strike. Demitri narrowed his gaze, then murmued, "And...now! A Psybeam, low to the ground!"

Porygon abruptly fired off a blast of energy towards the ground in front of Geodude; the attack struck right below it, knocking Geodude off balance and causing it to fly out of control as it bounded in midair. Porygon abruptly charged towards it, Demitri shouting, "Now, finish it with a Tackle!"

The attack abruptly impacted, Porygon smashing past Geodude and knocking off several small chunks of rock from its body given its jagged edges, knocking Geodude to the ground with a crash. Porygon descended, overlooking its now unconscious opponent. "Geodude is unable to battle!" the announcer called, Brock returning his Pokemon in response.

"Heh...you're good. That's to be expected, though," Brock remarked with a smile.

Demitri nodded slightly as the teen pulled out one more Poke Ball. "However...my last Pokemon won't be nearly as easy to take down."

"I'd be disappointed if it were," Demitri respodned plainly, his Porygon giving out a beep in response.

With this comment, Brock abruptly tossed forward his last Poke Ball, a column of light emerging forth...and growing until it almost reached the ceiling of the building. Demitri and Porygon both looked up as the light faded, revealing a massive snake seemingly composed entirely of rock, easily more than 25 feet long. It let out a very gruff roar, Demitri's mouth hanging agape for a moment.

_Onix, the Rock Snake Pokemon. As it grows, the stone portions of its body harden to become similar to a diamond, but colored black._

"...I have to face off against that?" Demitri mumbled lowly. Ranoku nodded in confirmation.

"You're not having second thoughts, are you?" Brock asked, tilting his head to one side.

Demitri pursed his lips together with a frown. "No. Not yet." He glanced at Porygon, murmuring, "I'll trade you out for now."

The Normal-type nodded, Demitri returning it to its Ball. The teen pulled out his other and tossed it forth, Aerodactyl abruptly shooting forth with a loud flash of light and a screech. Brock blinked in surprise, murmuring, "An Aerodactyl? But..."

He seemed to piece the information together and chuckled lowly as the Fossil Pokemon landed on the ground. "So...that was your Aerodactyl causing a fuss all over Pewter last night."

"His fault," Demitri and Anne murmured in unison, pointing at Ranoku accusingly as he sipped from one of his energy drinks with an innocent expression.

Brock responded with a low chuckle, lowering his head slightly. "Well, then this ought to be fun...a battle against an ancient Pokemon. Let's see what it can do." With this comment, the Gym Leader pointed forward, shouting, "Onix, Tackle!"

The massive snake let out another roar, lunging towards Aerodactyl with surprising speed. The Fossil Pokemon abruptly flew into the air, resulting in Onix smashing face-first into the ground and upturning a few of the rocks. Onix turned back around and continued to try and weave about in an attempt to his Aerodactyl, who avoided each with great agility. Demitri furrowed his brow, shouting, "Supersonic!"

Aerodactyl abruptly took a breath and let out a very loud screech, everyone forced to cover their ears. However, given its lack of hands, Onix was left to take the full brunt of the blow; it now waved about in a disoriented fashion, Brock grunting slightly. "Come on Onix, snap out of it!"

With this momentary respite, Demitri furrowed his brow. "Tch...didn't plan for this..." During this entire thought process, Onix had slowly began gathering its senses, Aerodactyl glancing at Demitri expectantly as the Rock Snake Pokemon abruptly dove towards it. The Fossil Pokemon shrieked as Onix abruptly plowed into it, smashing it into the ground and causing everyone to wince. "Aerodactyl!"

Onix slowly lifted itself up, Aerodactyl slowly staggering to its feet with a dizzy expression. "To be honest, I was expecting a little more from an ancient Pokemon..." Brock murmured with a small frown. "Another jarring hit like that'll knock it out whether it can still fight or not."

Demitri furrowed his brow. "Tch...he's got a bit of a point..." The teen mulled over Brock's words for a moment, suddenly blinking. "...he DOES have a point..." Pointing forward, Demitri shouted, "Quick, Agility!"

Quickly regaining its senses, Aerodactyl abruptly lifted into the air, vanishing. Brock blinked, looking around and murmuring, "Where did it go?"

Aerodactyl began appearing all over the battlefield, vanishing as soon as it came into view. Brock furrowed his brow slightly, Demitri managing a small smirk as Anne murmured, "What does he think he's doing? Aerodactyl's already faster than Onix by a mile, what makes him think he needs any mo-"

"I see what he's doing," Ranoku responded, giving a slight nod. "He doesn't need to be faster...he just needs more velocity."

Anne blinked slightly as Aerodactyl began darting about even faster, now only appearing as a blur all over the battlefield. Onix continued to look around, Demitri shouting, "Now, hit it with a Wing Attack!"

Aerodactyl abruptly smashed into Onix's head from behind, knocking it forward; although it wasn't floored, Onix seemed fairly shaken by the attack, giving a low grunt as Aerodactyl vanished again, regaining speed. Brock blinked in surprise as Demitri shouted, "Again!"

Another smash into Onix's head, followed by several more similar strikes. Anne blinked in curiosity, Ranoku explaining, "Demitri doesn't have any hope of breaking through Onix's rock-hard defense...so he's going to do the next best thing."

Ranoku lifted his now empty can up. "Gathering more speed won't be enough for him to break Onix, but it will be enough for him to cause some major internal damage. By striking Onix at the head enough times, he'll knock it unconscious without causing damage to the rest of its body."

Anne blinked in surprise, glancing back at the battlefield as Onix continued to be knocked about by Aerodactyl, finally being smashed in the face and causing it to fall backwards with a muffled groan, smashing into the ground with a loud smash as Aerodactyl landed back on the ground, panting slightly. Brock rushed to the head of the Rock Snake, shouting, "Onix!"

The Rock Snake Pokemon was visibly unconscious, giving out a very low moan. "Onix is unable to battle!" the announcer called, motioning to Demitri. "And the victory goes to Demitri!"

The teen folded his arms with a nod, Aerodactyl letting out a victorious screech before staggering about, itself suffering from the multiple jarring blows it had dealt. Demitri stroked its head as Brock returned Onix to its Ball, stepping towards Demitri. "Well done. I have to say I'm impressed."

"Thank you," Demitri responded with a nod.

"I might not've been around to know how your parents did in their first Gym battle...but I'm sure they'd be proud," he added, reaching into his pocket. "You've earned this."

With this comment, Brock placed a small, gray item in Demitri's hand; he quickly noticed it as the badge Anne had shown them previously. "This is the Boulder Badge. You've earned it."

Demitri nodded, looking up at Brock once more. "Thank you."

Ranoku and Anne approached, the little girl folding her hands behind her head. "Weeeellllll, I'll admit that was impressive."

This was met with an eye roll from Demitri, the trio now headed out of the door and outside of the Gym. "Now that you both've got a Gym badge, we can head towards our next destination," Ranoku remarked, pulling out a map from his pack.

Demitri and Anne slowly glanced towards Ranoku, the girl murmuring, "And that would be where...?"

The teen turned around, showing them the map and pointing towards a segment on the upper portion of it. "Cerulean City." His finger trailed towards the north-western portion of the map. "Pewter City is right there."

"Wait," Demitri uttered, his gaze travelling to what looked to be a rocky portion of road in between the two cities. "What's that between them...?"

Ranoku looked at the map. "Oh, that. In order to get to Cerulean City, we have to go through Mt. Moon."


	17. Mt Moon

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 17-Mt. Moon

The trio now walked along a rocky path sloping upwards, Ranoku in front with a map. In the distance, the silhouette of a very tall mountain could be seen in the afternoon sky. "...so, this Mt. Moon," Anne murmured, lifting a hand. "What is it?"

"It's a mountain that separates Pewter City and Cerulean City," Demitri explained, glancing at her. "It's also where the Moon Stone was first discovered...and as of late, people've been finding fossils there as well."

"It's a pretty challenging climb," Ranoku responded, both Demitri and Anne staring at him incredulously.

"...so, I just started my journey, and I'm already climbing giant mountains," Demitri mumbled flatly. "Isn't there some way around it?"

Ranoku turned around to him, poking Demitri's forehead to stop him. "Relax, we're not climbing over it. There's a cave that goes right through it that we can take."

The teen turned around, Demitri and Anne exchanging another glance. "And that's a problem, how?"

"Well, it's infested with Zubats," Ranoku explained, Anne's eyes widening and a shiver going down her spine. "They're like leeches with wings."

"Th-thanks for reminding me..." she uttered lowly, wincing. "We'll get through it just fine though, right?"

Ranoku glanced at Anne with a dopey smile. "Of course we will! Don't worry."

The little girl hung her head with a sigh, Demitri's attention going to a wooden building a short distance away, a Poke Ball insignia on the front. "Is that a Pokemon Center...?" he murmured lowly.

Ranoku nodded in response. "Mhm. Good eye."

"Seems a little rural compared to the last one, though," the teen murmured, the trio stepping through the doors and into the main area, which seemed more like a log cabin than the high-tech interior of the one in Pewter.

"Ah, as long as it's a place for Trainers to rest up, it's fine," Ranoku respodned, the group approaching the front desk; a pink-haired nurse, looking almost exactly identical to the one in Pewter, approached.

"Hello, and welcome to the Mt. Moon Pokemon Center!"

Demitri blinked in surprise. "...wait, didn't we see you in Pewter?"

The nurse responded with a contemplative expression before shaking her head. "Um...no, I don't think so."

Ranoku cleared his throat, taking on a superior stance. "Every Pokemon Center is run by a family of nurses who all go by the name Joy."

Demitri's gaze turned back to the nurse, who smiled in response and gave a nod. "He's right."

"Uh...huh. That's highly unrealistic, but I'll take your word for it," the teen murmured with a slight nod. "We're looking to stock up on supplies to get through Mt. Moon."

The nurse responded with a nod. "You've got it." She proceeded to pull out a small crate from below the desk, murmuring, "We've got your lanterns, your maps, any Antidotes should the local Zubat become a problem..."

Ranoku accepted the crate with a nod, bowing. "Thank you."

"Oh, and if I were you, I'd be warned," the nurse murmured, adopting a serious expression. "Shady characters have been reported going about Mt. Moon..."

Anne's eyes widened in fear, Ranoku waving a hand about. "Thanks for the warning, but we won't be needing it. We'll be just fine."

With this comment, he led the trio out of the building, Demitri glancing at Ranoku slightly. "Shady characters...wonder what that could be."

"Y-you think there are bad guys in there?" Anne stammered nervously, shivering.

Ranoku shook his head dismissively. "Aahh, don't worry. It's just a silly rumor. And besides..."

He turned around to the duo, jerking a thumb to his chest with a cocky expression. "I'll be able to take care of any and all ne'er-do-wells should they decide to rear their ugly faces!"

Demitri rolled his eyes in response. "Riiiiiight, forget I said anything...let's just get moving before it gets dark."

**-Meanwhile-**

The sound of pickaxes impacting stone echoed throughout the entire cavern, occasionally accompanied by a light screech of cart wheels rolling along. Every so often, the sound of dirt and rocks falling would be heard, followed by several people clad entirely in black outfits and hats sifting through them. "Come on, hurry it up! I don't want to have to report to the boss that we didn't find any fossils here!"

The voice came from a specific black-clad figure; a female with a black shirt and skirt. She had long blonde hair that reached past her waist, and a rather cold demeanor. On the front of her outfit was a very prominant red "R"; the same design was on the front of every other figue in the room as well. During this time, another similarly clothed figure began approaching, carrying a box. Before he got very far, however, he tripped over another rock, sending the contents flying to the ground. The boy, who had rather unkempt, dark green hair, quickly sat up with a gasp. "Agh!"

"Kibou!" the blonde-haired girl shouted, turning to him and setting her hands on her hips. "Be careful, there might be fossils in there!"

"Sorry Lady Yakuin..." he murmured lowly, beginning to sift through the dirt for a few moments; however, he quickly shook his head. "Nope, none in here."

The girl, Yakuin, gritted her teeth in anger. "Tch, we're not getting anywhere at this rate..."

She proceeded to walk towards another portion of the cavernous room, where a dark-haired boy was tied up to a rock. Perched on the other side of said rock was a purple moth-like Pokemon with three horns sticking from its head. "You! Are you CERTAIN that there are fossils here?"

The boy quickly nodded. "Y-yes ma'am, I'm positive!"

Yakuin furrowed her brow in irritation. "If you're lying to me..." Her gaze went to the moth, who extended its wings slightly, revealing the traces of purple powder on them. This gave the boy a fearful gaze, and he gulped in anxiety. Yakuin turned around, shouting, "Kibou!"

"Yes ma'am!" the green hair boy remarked, quickly stepping in front of her with a salute.

"Go patrol. We don't want anyone knowing we're here," she uttered, earning a nod from Kibou.

"Yes ma'am!" He quickly dashed off at this, leaving Yakuin to pinch the bridge of her nose with a sigh when the boy tripped over another rock, landing face-first onto the ground.

**-Meanwhile-**

Mt. Moon was every bit as dark as expected, though it was helped considerably by the lantern the Pokemon Center had given. Ranoku walked at the front with the map, Anne behind him with the lantern, and Demitri at the very back, going through the rest of the crate. "...we got lantern fuel and food too? They don't expect us to get lost in here, do they?"

Anne glanced up at Ranoku with a worried expression. "That won't happen...right?"

"Iunno," the teen responded blankly with a shrug, earning a terrified shiver from Anne and a frown of disapproval from Demitri. Ranoku glanced back at them, saying, "I have an emergency button or two to get us out of here in case anyway. Besides..." Ranoku lifted up the map he had been reading. "...I've got a map."

He turned back around and continued walking, though he was cut off by a slight cough from Demitri. Ranoku slowly turned back to him with a slight frown, murmuring, "Pardon me?"

"Well, you know what happens with people and maps," Demitri mused absent-mindedly, closing his eyes and folding his arms. "They start fighting over it, and eventually the least competent gets the map and gets the group lost anyway."

Anne turned to Demitri with a frown, Ranoku setting his hands on his hips. "Are you calling me incompetent?"

"No, no," Demitri responded with a bored tone. "I'm just saying that the least competent is gonna end up with it eventually."

"Well, that won't happen, because I've got the map," Ranoku finished, turning back around with a huff.

Demitri nodded slightly. "Alright, alright...just don't get us lost."

Ranoku slowly glanced back at Demitri with a glare of disapproval, Anne quickly clearing her throat. "As much as I'd love to see you kick Demitri's butt, I'd love more for us to hurry up and get out of here."

The teen glanced back at her with a nod. "Alright." The trio resumed their walk, unknowing of a single, round eye staring at them from the darkness before flying silently overhead.


	18. Team Rocket

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 18-Team Rocket

A spherical, silver object levitated throughout the caverns, its single, round eye staring through the darkness and finally reaching the torch-lit halways the black clad men were working in. Kibou stood nearby, arms folded, as the spherical creature descended in front of him. "Find anyone?"

The Pokemon nodded, Kibou's gaze turning to three other nearby men. "Dispose of them."

The three nodded, walking off with a slight mumble and disappearing into the cavern. Kibou stared after them, arms folded as the mechanical-looking Pokemon descended down behind him.

**-Meanwhile-**

The path in Mt. Moon seemed to wind on endlessly, Demitri and the others continuing to walk seemingly aimlessly. "This place is creepy..." Anne mumbled nervously, arms pulled to her chest and eyes scanning her surroundings feverishly.

Demitri's gaze went to her. "As creepy as Viridian Forest?"

A few moments passed in thought, Anne putting a finger to her chin. "...well, not really THAT creepy, but creepy nonetheless!"

Ranoku let out a slight chuckle, shrugging. "It's a cave, how bad could it be?" Demitri and Anne stared at Ranoku for a few moments. He paused for a moment, leisurely adding, "Aside from the Zubats, there's nothing to be afraid o-"

The teen was abruptly cut off when they were abruptly jumped from a nearby opening, three figures lunging at them and swatting the lantern away, resulting in the light going out. Anne squealed in panic, her mouth abruptly getting covered by one of the figures. "Shut up!"

"Get off!" Ranoku grunted rather audibly, some light shoving and smacking sounds being heard in the darkness; Demitri had began leaning back in an attempt to get away, avoiding every blind swipe. The sounds of the struggle finally began getting fainter, until the only sounds were that of the cave itself. Demitri remained silent, slowly taking a step forward and causing his foot to brush up against something. He jumped slightly, quickly reaching down and managing to get a grip on the lantern Ranoku had dropped. The teen switched it on, looking around.

Ranoku and Anne were gone. Demitri quickly whirled around, scanning the surroundings. "Ranoku? Anne? Where are you?" he called. No response. "Damn it..."

Demitri's eyes continued to trail about, memory finally leading him to look down at the ground, noticing the footsteps headed in one direction. He furrowed his brow, quickly following.

**-Meanwhile-**

Ranoku and Anne were pushed into the excavation site, both grunting slightly. "Hey! Watch the outfit, I just got it cleaned!" Anne complained audibly, the two tied up to a nearby boulder. The three grunts chuckled slightly and walked off, the duo quickly looking around. "Wh-where are we?"

Both did a quick scan of the room, Ranoku furrowing his brow. "From the looks of it...this is a construction site or something."

During this time, a blonde-haired girl in the same outfit as the grunts approached; Yakuin. She looked the duo over, her gaze falling on Ranoku for a few moments as if he had piqued her interest for some reason. "So, you're our intruders?"

Ranoku scowled back, Anne struggling in her bindings. "Who are you?"

Yakuin chuckled at this, preparing to speak back but only cut off by an audible crashing sound. All three winced and looked around, finding Kibou standing up amidst a spilt stack of boxes. "S-sorry..."

The girl rolled her eyes at this, glancing at Ranoku and Anne slightly. "Silly little girl...you wouldn't understand, even if we were to tell you."

"We've seen our fair share of weirdness," Ranoku responded bluntly. "Go ahead, surprise me."

Yakuin blinked slightly, rolling her eyes before waving a hand about. "Very well then. We are Team Rocket, the most feared villains in all of the world!"

Anne's eyes widened considerably. "T-Team Rocket?" A few moments passed, and she slowly looked at Ranoku. "Who's Team Rocket?"

This time, it was Ranoku's turn to roll his eyes in exasperation. "Team Rocket is a criminal organization bent on world conquest...looking back, I can't believe I didn't realize it was you crooks behind the rumors after all."

Yakuin took on an offended tone and expression. "Crooks? Now that's degrading." She then smirked rather widely. "We are criminal masterminds, and you will treat us with respect!"

This was met with another crash from Kibou, who had tripped over a nearby stone, flooring himself in the process and sending the rock flying into a nearby crate, shattering it and spilling dirt everywhere. "O-oops..."

Everyone exchanged a sweatdrop, Anne mumbling, "Yeah, you've TOTALLY earned my respect."

Kibou slowly stood up at this, Yakuin approaching. "Keep an eye on the intruders. Make sure they don't escape. And if they do..."

"I'll take care of everything, ma'am," Kibou responded with a nod, stepping towards Ranoku and Anne as Yakuin walked off.

The Rocket stepped forward and looked the duo over, Ranoku glaring at him. "You're not getting away with this."

"And what makes you say that?" Kibou responded with a chuckle, adopting a cocky expression. "You're a little...tied up at the moment."

A few moments passed in silence, both groups staring at each other. "That was terrible."

Kibou glared at Anne for a moment, Ranoku looking away with a superior tone. "I'll have you know that I'm a very skilled Pokemon Trainer."

"That much doesn't matter," Kibou responded, bending down to Ranoku. "You STILL can't escape."

Ranoku furrowed his brow, giving a slight shrug. "Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that..." Kibou blinked slightly, Ranoku glancing at him with a sly smile. "After all, your grunts did forget one person."

Kibou blinked in surprise. "What? They did?"

The three Rockets, who had until then been watching silently, exchanged a glance. "Mhm. They jumped us so quick, they forgot to pick up our third traveling partner."

Anne glanced at Ranoku slightly. "You're not honestly talking about Demitri, are you?" The teen glanced at her with a slight nod, prompting the little girl to abruptly hang her head with a groan, mumbling, "We're doomed."

Kibou frowned slightly, glancing at the grunts. "Go deal with the one you forgot." All three saluted and dashed off, leaving Kibou to glare at the duo with disdain.

**-Meanwhile-**

Demitri had continued to walk throughout the cavern, continuously staring at the floor at the footprints that had been left behind. He had, by now, pulled Porygon out of its Ball so that he was on perfect guard, the Virtual Pokemon scanning the surroundings for any signs of attackers. Demitri looked up, quickly noticing some lit torches nearby; he turned off the lantern and stowed it away, stepping towards the light. He was, however, immediately alerted by Porygon to an approaching group, prompting the teen to quickly hide behind a nearby boulder. "That kid's gotta be around here somewhere..."

Using his still dim surroundings to his advantage, Demitri very slowly poked his head out, noticing the three Rocket grunts from earlier. He furrowed his brow, another musing, "What if he's not even here? For all we know, he might've bailed on those two others."

"I hear ya. Then there'd be no point in lookin' for him."

Demitri used this opportunty to strike, quickly whirling out of his hiding place and pointing forward. "Porygon, Psybeam!"

The Normal-type abruptly popped up in front of him, firing off a blast of psychic energy that forced the trio to quickly scatter, hopping back as Demitri stepped into the light. "That him, that's the guy!" the grunts shouted, all three pulling out a Poke Ball. "Get him!"

All three Balls were hurled forward, each releasing a Rattata, which growled threateningly as they approached Demitri. The teen remained unperturbed, mumbling, "Come get some."


	19. Scuffle In Mt Moon

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 19-Scuffle in Mt. Moon

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Team Rocket Grunt x3 **  
**Location: Mt. Moon **  
**Multi Battle**

All three Rattata lunged forth at the same time, letting out a shriek in the process. Demitri and Porygon both quickly moved out of the way; the teen had considered bringing out Aerodactyl, however, it wouldn't do him any good given the cramped cave space they were fighting in. This left him solely with Porygon; he'd have to be careful. "Psybeam!"

The Rattata came around for another attack, only for Porygon to slowly float back, firing off several blasts towards the incoming trio. Two of the Rattata were knocked down immediately, while the remaining one managed to slam into Porygon. The Normal-type let out a buzz in response, the rat hopping back to give itself space. The other two were returned back to their Balls, one of the grunts uttering, "Tch...he's good."

"You haven't seen anything yet," Demitri remarked flatly, motioning forward. "Porygon, another Psybeam."

Several more blasts were fired towards the Rattata, who quickly attempted to dodge each strike as the Rockets sent forth two more Pokemon; these being two blue bat-like Pokemon without eyes, wide mouths, and purple wings.

_Zubat, the Bat Pokemon. Forms colonies in perpetually dark places. Uses ultrasonic waves to identify and approach targets._

Demitri furrowed his brow slightly, both Rockets pointing forward and commanding, "Zubat, Supersonic!"

Both bats abruptly let out a rather loud screech, several glowing rings shot forth from their mouths to label the area of effect. The attack enveloped Demitri and Porygon, the teen covering his ears with a growl as Porygon let out several distressed buzzes, its pupils visibly quivering. The Virtual Pokemon slowly drifted to the ground, all three Rockets chuckling and stepping forth, calling off the attack. "Looks like we've got him."

One of the grunts pulled out a rope, stepping forth in preparation to tie Demitri up. The teen looked up, finally managing to collect his senses and abruptly scooping up his disoriented Porygon. The Rockets were caught off guard as Demitri wheeled behind them rather speedily, shouting, "Porygon, Sharpen!"

Despite its rattled status, Porygon obeyed, suddenly causing all of its edges to sharpen considerably, forcing the Rockets to whirl around and notice a bladed Porygon being pointed towards them. "Z-Zubat, Rattata!"

All three Pokemon lunged towards Demitri, the teen glancing around and quickly whirling to the side; using his own Pokemon as a weapon, he swatted the three Pokemon away, smacking them with the blunt side of the blades and knocking them away, now unconscious. The tables quickly turned, all three grunts began inching backwards slightly, Demitri approaching menacingly with his sharpened Pokemon oustretched. "What did you do with my traveling companions?" he demanded.

All three grunts exchanged a glance, only now landing against one of the walls, nowhere to run. "Y-you won't get an answer out of us!" one of the grunts retorted.

Demitri furrowed his brow in response. "Porygon, Sharpen once more." The bladed portions elongated even more, forcing the grunts to press up against the wall as much as they could to avoid being stabbed. "Tell me where they are." No response, the grunts simply staring at Porygon with a nervous expression. Demitri closed his eyes, finally muttering, "Alright...you asked for it."

With this comment, he lifted up Porygon, preparing to plunge it towards the grunts...instead of impaling them, however, he stabbed an area of the wall right in between their heads, making a clean slice through the wall. All three stared at the spot in a panic, one of the grunts squeaking, "Th-that's a pointy Pokemon!"

"Now, tell me where they are," Demitri remarked more forcefully than before, stepping forth slightly. "Or else I will cut you up so badly, that you'll..." The teen paused for a moment, looking up slightly as if to try and come up with a witty comment. "...you'll...wish...I hadn't cut you up so badly."

Despite Demitri's rather unimpressive threat, one of the grunts abruptly squealed, "They're being held by our superiors!" Demitri blinked as said grunt pointed down the path they had come from, adding, "That way! But when the others see you, you'll be captured as well!"

"Thank you," Demitri uttered, Porygon's sharpened portions retracting and prompting the Normal-type to shake itself off, managing to recollect its senses. With the threat gone, all three grunts scurried off towards the area they had pointed out, no doubt to alert their allies. Demitri furrowed his brow, Porygon giving off a beep. "My thoughts exactly. We should hide."

**-Meanwhile-**

"...no WAY."

"Yes way, I'm serious! I saw it with my own two eyes!"

Kibou didn't seem convinced. "You can't honestly tell me that it had health, dental, AND vision."

Ranoku turned his head up slightly, closing his eyes with a slightly superior smirk and tone. "Well, I'm sure there would've been a string or two attached, but I sure as hell did see it in the application. Tell 'im Anne, you saw it too."

Said girl had been staring at the ground with a rather unimpressed expression. "Yes, I saw it too," the girl mumbled flatly.

"I still don't believe you," Kibou remarked, folding his arms. "I'm going to check myself next time business takes us over-"

"K-Kibou!" Said Rocket turned around, watching as the three grunts he had sent earlier came toppling back, panting and with rather shaken expressions. Ranoku and Anne both blinked, one of the grunts stammering, "We found the other Trainer, but he defeated us and made us tell him where we are!"

Ranoku and Anne exchanged a glance, Kibou frowning. "Tch...tell Yakuin. I'm gonna deal with this myself." He proceeded to point at Ranoku, uttering, "We're not done just yet."

The Rocket proceeded to dash off, the three grunts also leaving to locate their other superior. A few moments passed, Anne now struggling about in her bindings. "Quick, now that he's gone we need to escape!"

"Don't waste your energy," Ranoku responded blankly, looking down at the ropes. "We won't be getting out of here easily."

Anne cast her mentor a rather frenzied glance, and responded, "But we can't just sit here and do nothing!"

Ranoku glanced back at her with a rather cool expression. "That's funny. We've been doing exactly that, and Demitri's been handling the situation rather well."

"If he were handling the situation WELL, he wouldn't have gotten found!" Anne retorted angrily.

"True, true," Ranoku remarked, lifting a finger slightly from where his hands were bound. "But he did manage to get us all alone."

A few moments passed in silence, a vein popped form Anne's head. "But you just said we couldn't get out of here! Which is it?"

A few more moments passed in silence, Ranoku looking away with a blank expression. "I dunno." Anne let out a rather angry groan, tilting her head back against the rock in exasperation.

**-Meanwhile-**

Kibou had soon arrived at the cavern with a few other grunts, looking around slightly. "This is it?"

"Yes sir," another responded, all of them splitting up to scan the area. However, despite looking through boxes, in every crevice, and boulder, there was no sign of Demitri. Kibou glanced at the grunts, one of them mumbling, "He doesn't seem to be here..."

"He probably turned tail and ran," Kibou responded blankly, turning to the other grunts. "Split up and search this entire cave, I don't want him blabbering to the authorities that we're here."

"Yes sir!" All of the grunts quickly dashed off, leaving Kibou to fold his arms and look around slightly.

"...where are you, ya little rat...?" Kibou mumbled, turning around slightly. He was cut off by a faint scraping sound, causing him to pause and close his eyes, listening intently. Another faint scraping, coming from above. Kibou quickly looked up; sure enough, Demitri was precariously perched on a very small outcropping above, Porygon alongside him. Kibou's eyes widened. "You!"

Demitri abruptly kicked off of the wall, forcing Kibou to quickly step back to avoid being stomped on as Demitri landed in a crouching position. The teen slowly stood up, shifting his glasses about and looking up at Kibou. The air became rather thick, both Trainers staring off at each other silently.

**-Meanwhile-**

Anne had kept her head against the rock, eyes closed with a rather heavy sigh. A few moments passed, however, and she was interrupted by a slight snapping and fizzing sound; the ever familiar sound of a drink can being opened. She slowly glanced at Ranoku, who was currently sipping one of his energy drinks; the girl sighed again and tilted her head back. A few seconds later, however, and she realized that meant Ranoku's arm had been freed. Her eyes shot open and she jerked her head up, glancing at Ranoku and shouting, "How did you do that?"

The teen glanced at her leisurely. "It's a pull tab. You just put your finger right here under the-"

"I know how you open it!" Anne shouted angrily, leaning towards him. "How did you get your arm free?"

"Oh, that," Ranoku mused calmly, lifting up one of his arms and revealing a small oval-shaped object, which he pressed on to reveal a bladed portion inside. "I just got the knife out of my back pocket and cut the ropes so I could get my drink."

A few moments passed, Anne gawking at Ranoku incredulously. The teen went to take a drink, only for Anne to jerk herself towards him with an enraged expression. "WHY DIDN'T YOU JUST FREE US TO BEGIN WITH?"

Ranoku leaned back with a rather accusatory glance at her. "I was thirsty..."

The girl let out several more annoyed growls, finally sighing irritably and shifting about; indeed, the ropes were looser and enabled her to reach her satchel. She managed to activate one of her Poke Balls, releasing Meowth. "Meowth, cut the ropes for us!"

The cat Pokemon obeyed, slicing up the ropes and enabling Anne and Ranoku to stand up." Good job," the older teen remarked, sipping from his drink and prompting Anne to glance at him with a slightly twitching eye.

"Let's get out of here before they realize we're gone!" she remarked, headed down one direction, only to be halted when Ranoku grabbed her by the scruff of her shirt.

"Whoooaaaa, slow down there," he remarked, spinning her around to face him. "What about Demitri?"

"What about him?" Anne responded rather impatiently, setting her hands on her hips. "He was holding us back anyway!"

Ranoku fell silent for a moment, blinking before mumbling, "He's risking life and limb to save us right now, and you're just going to leave him behind like that?"

"Yeah. So?" Anne remarked bluntly, tilting her head to one side.

This was met with a slight sigh from the teen, who pinched the bridge of his nose. "Perhaps I should've taken more time to teach you moral lessons, and not just Pokemon..." He began walking off towards where Kibou had ran off, murmuring, "I'm going back to help Demitri. You can go on ahead if you want."

Anne's eyes widened as Ranoku began walking off, the little girl shouting, "Aw, come on! You can't just leave me here!" When Ranoku didn't stop walking, Anne gave off a rather angry groan and followed after him quickly.


	20. Scuffle In Mt Moon part 2

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 20-Scuffle in Mt. Moon part 2

"So...you must be the intruder."

Demitri and Kibou continued to stare off, both retaining a serious expression. "And you're the no good weasel that captured my traveling companions."

The Rocket held up both hands, looking away innocently. "Not really...I only gave the order to take them hostage."

"Yeah, but it was technically your doing since it was your intention."

"No, no, I didn't do it, I was nowhere near it when it happened."

"Yes, but you still ordered it, and the leader is still to blame alongside the henchmen. When criminals get caught, the leader gets taken away too, since he was giving them orders and organizing their movements."

"Yeah, I know, but TECHNICALLY, I didn't do it, I just ordered it. I did, but I didn't."

Demitri and Kibou continued to stare at each other, the former closing his eyes with a sweatdrop. "...why are we arguing about this?"

"Honestly, I'm not even the one in charge of this operation," Kibou added, looking away and rubbing his chin. "I'm second-in-command. You want the leader, then you wanna go after Yakuin."

Demitri blinked slightly. "...is that right?"

"Yup."

"Well then. Thank you for the information."

"No problem," Kibou responded, Demitri preparing to walk past him. A moment later, the Rocket abruptly blinked, whirling around after him. "Hey, wait a minute!"

Demitri slowly glanced back at Kibou with a glazed expression, said Rocket quickly pulling out a Poke Ball. "I'm not going to let you get past here! You're going to join your friends as prisoners of Team Rocket!"

This was met with a curious blink from Demitri, who took the opportunity to slowly look over Kibou's outfit. "Oh yeah...Team Rocket. I thought your outfit looked familiar. I've heard my parents talk about your organization."

"Is that so?" Kibou remarked, leaning back and rubbing the back of his head with a rather confident expression. "I shouldn't be so surprised, though."

"Yeah," Demitri remarked, his gaze going to Porygon slightly. "All the more reason for me to stay behind after all and thrash you something fierce. Can't let thugs like you continue running about like you own the place."

Kibou's smirk turned into a rather large frown, his gaze narrowing as he turned back to Demitri with a growl. "We're not thugs! We're a powerful criminal organization!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Demitri murmured, waving a hand about. "Now let's hurry this up so I can meet back with my traveling companions."

The Rocket growled in irritation, gripping his Poke Ball tighter. "You're not gonna get past here! Now I'm mad, and I'm going to ensure that you don't make it out of Mt. Moon as a free man!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Team Rocket Executive Kibou **  
**Location: Mt. Moon **  
**Single Battle**

"We'll see about that," Demitri responded, motioning Porygon forward as Kibou tossed his Poke Ball forth, unleashing a Zubat. Demitri furrowed his brow, pointing forward and commanding, "Porygon, Psybeam!"

The Normal-type obeyed, firing off several blasts of psyshic energy at the bat, who quickly flew about to avoid the attacks, resulting in Porygon's attacks carving into the walls around them. Several boulders were upset, one of them nearly hitting Kibou on the head. "Hey! Watch where you're blasting!" he shouted angrily, gritting his teeth together. "Zubat, Leech Life!"

Screeching, the Zubat swooped towards Porygon, who quickly ducked under the attack, glancing around as the Zubat whirled around, preparing another sweep. "Porygon, meet it headlong with Tackle!"

Porygon abruptly charged at Zubat, who was forced to halt to avoid running right into its opponent. The Bat Pokemon then quickly dove underneath Porygon, who skidded to a halt to find Zubat now positioned behind it. "Now, Wing Attack!"

With this command, Zubat's wings began glowing rather brightly, the bat swooping towards Porygon and slamming into it before it could turn around completely. The Virtual Pokemon was smacked into a wall with a buzz, slowly looking up as Zubat began approaching once more. Demitri narrowed his gaze, his eyes trailing up to another portion of the wall above them. "Finish it with another Wing Attack!"

Zubat lunged towards Porygon once again, Demitri narrowing his gaze slightly. "Porygon, move out of the way!"

Kibou blinked as Porygon quickly ascended, resulting in Zubat smashing into the wall rather harshly, causing the wall to rumble and prompting some other loose rocks to begin falling down. Kibou's eyes widened as Zubat looked up, only for the rocks to smash down onto it with a resounding crash, Demitri and Kibou both wincing as Zubat squirmed about for a moment, before finally falling unconscious. Kibou let out a growl, returning Zubat as Porygon levitated back to Demitri's side. "You alright, Porygon?"

The Normal-type shivered in response and nodded, Kibou pulling out another Poke Ball. "It won't be for long...I'm not done yet!"

**-Meanwhile-**

"You know, Mt. Moon was where the Moon Stone was discovered."

Anne slowly glanced at Ranoku with a rather blank expression. "...the what?"

"Moon Stone," Ranoku echoed, sipping from his drink surprisingly smoothly despite their light jogging speed. "An evolutionary stone thought to have come from space."

The little girl's eyes sparkled in wonder, leaning forward as she mumbled, "Ooohhh...really?"

Ranoku nodded, pausing to look through one of the crates nearby. "Let's see here...ah. There we are."

He proceeded to pull out a somewhat large rock, dusting off the dirt and showing it to Anne; it was pitch black, yet had a rather unearthly sheen to it. The little girl's eyes widened in wonder, Ranoku waving it around. "This is a Moon Stone."

"It's so prettyyyyyyyy..." Anne mumbled blankly, Ranoku lifting up her hand and placing it in it.

"And it's yours. I don't have a use for it," he responded, giving a slight smile as Anne looked up at him in surprise.

"Wha...really?" Ranoku nodded, Anne breaking out into a rather wide smile and hugging his legs. "Thanks Ranoku!"

Before the teen could offer a response, the sound of a female clearing their throat was heard. "Excuse me, but the contents of that crate are property of Team Rocket." Ranoku and Anne slowly looked around, taking note of Yakuin standing nearby, arms folded with a small smirk on her face. "I suggest you put it back unless you want to suffer a fate worse than being tied up to a rock."

Anne responded with a rather sour expression. "Pfft, you crooks are guilty of all sorts of crimes; you don't deserve this!" She began waving the Moon Stone in front of her before putting it in her satchel.

Yakuin responded with a slight shrug. "Eh. You MAY be right, but..." Her smirk widened. "...I still won't let you get away with interrupting our operation."

Ranoku narrowed his gaze, stepping forward slightly. "Out of curiosity...why is Team Rocket having some sort of huge excavation project in Mt. Moon anyway? Moon Stones may be pretty and rare, but they're not THAT valuable."

The Rocket let out a rather confident laugh, lowering her gaze slightly and murmuring, "Fossils, of course. We revive the Pokemon from fossils, then sell them off for money! It's a rather straightforward process, if I do say so myself."

Anne blinked slightly, glancing at Ranoku, the memories of Aerodactyl flying across Pewter going through her mind. "I didn't even know there were fossils here," Ranoku remarked with a slight shrug.

"Yes, well, we haven't been having the best of luck so far," Yakuin murmured with a sigh, shaking her head. "But we're not leaving without SOMETHING." She looked back up, giving another smirk. "And you lot are in the way. So now it's time to remove you."

Ranoku narrowed his gaze, Anne spacing herself out slightly with a light growl. "Great. We can get revenge for you taking us hostage in the first place!" she shouted angrily.

"Anne. Leave her to me." Anne blinked and looked up at Ranoku, who reached into his pack and pulled out a Poke Ball. "Find Demitri and bring him back here."

The little girl went to open her mouth, but was cut off upon noticing the eerily serious expression in her mentor's eyes. The purple coloration had seemingly been magnified; that was the cue she had come to know as the time when he was at his most serious. "...alright," she murmured lowly, quickly dashing past Yakuin, who spared the girl a single glance before turning back to Ranoku.

"Hm...well, aren't you chivalrous. Letting your little friend run off so that she wouldn't get the snot beaten out of her." Yakuin extended a hand, a purple moth-like Pokemon with three horns extending from its head descending forth. "Unfortunately, that also means you're all alone."

_Venomoth, the Poison Moth Pokemon. The evolved form of Venonat. The dustlike scales covering its wings are color-coded to indicate the kinds of poison it has._

Ranoku narrowed his gaze slightly, murmuring, "That's not exactly the reason..." He proceeded to crush his now empty energy drink can, dropping it into his pack and pulling out a Poke Ball in response. _"There's something about her..."_

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Ranoku vs. Team Rocket Executive Yakuin **  
**Location: Mt. Moon **  
**Single Batttle**

The teen abruptly tossed forth his Poke Ball, releasing Slowbro to the field with a rather lazy yawn. "Venomoth, Signal Beam!" Yakuin ordered, pointing forward.

The Bug-type obeyed, flying up and firing off a rather large blast of multi-colored energy from its horns. Ranoku narrowed his gaze and motioned forward, commanding, "Slowbro, Amnesia!"

With this command, Slowbro let out a rather drawn-out yawn, its body giving off a faint glow as the attack landed, sending it skidding back slightly. The Hermit Crab Pokemon opened its eyes back, Ranoku calling, "Now, hit it with a Psychic!"

Slowbro's eyes began glowing a rather bright blue, the air in front of it distorting slightly and blasting towards Venomoth, who quickly dove out of the way; the attack continued onwards and impacted a nearby wall, knocking down several boulders and sending them raining down, shattering crates and damaging digging supplies. Yakuin gave off a rather annoyed expression, growling, "We still have a deposit on those, you know!"

"Kiss my ass," Ranoku responded plainly, motioning forward once again. "Slowbro, crush that thing with another Psychic!"

The Water-type continued to fire off several telekinetic blasts, destroying several more portions of the cave and sending several more boulders raining down. One finally managed to nick at Venomoth's wing, knocking it slightly off balance and prompting Ranoku's eyes to widen slightly. "There!"

Slowbro was just as fast, firing a Psychic blast at Venomoth before it could recover and sending the bug crashing into a wall rather harshly, several more boulders falling down and crashing onto Venomoth, seemingly burying it. Yakuin frowned rather deeply, Ranoku narrowing his gaze in anticipation. "Venomoth!"

With this comment, the rocks began shaking slightly, being levitated upwards as Venomoth flew back up, extending its wings and sending some bits of dust flying to the sides. Ranoku narrowed his gaze, though Yakuin retained her smirking demeanor and pointed forward. "Venomoth, Bug Buzz!"

Venomoth abruptly levitated into the air, letting out a massive screech that began distorting the air, the ear-splitting buzzing noise causing the stones surrounding it to shatter and be sent flying backwards. Ranoku was quickly forced to cover his ears in an attempt to cut off the noisy onslaught, though Slowbro wasn't as lucky. The Psychic-type let out a rather gurgled groan and leaned back, falling onto its back and twitching. Yakuin let out a rather hysterical laugh, Ranoku quickly leaning up and returning the Hermit Crab Pokemon, prompting Venomoth to halt its attack. "Had enough?"

Ranoku responded to this with a rather annoyed growl, only for it to be cut off with a slight smirk of his own. He stood up, chuckling lowly and murmuring, "Not a chance..."


	21. Scuffle In Mt Moon part 3

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 21-Scuffle in Mt. Moon part 3

**Battle Re-cap **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri **  
**Porygon**

**vs.**

**Team Rocket Executive Kibou **  
**Zubat (KO'ed by Porygon)**  
**?**

Kibou abruptly hurled forth his second Poke Ball, the orb bursting open with a flash and taking the shape of a round, silver-plated Pokemon with a single eye and a pair of magnets protruding from its sides. The round Pokemon let out a rather loud buzz and levitated up slightly.

_Magnemite, the Magnet Pokemon. It is born with the ability to defy gravity. It floats in air on powerful electromagnetic waves._

Demitri furrowed his brow, Kibou giving off a low chuckle and smirking widely. "You might've had an advantage before, but the match is in my favor now...without any type advantages for you to exploit."

"Tch. I don't need to rely on that to win," Demitri responded plainly, motioning forward. "Porygon, Psybeam!"

The Virtual Pokemon obeyed with a beep, several blasts of psychic energy being fired at the Magnemite. It swiftly moved to the side, Kibou chuckling as all of Porygon's attacks flew past his Pokemon. "Give it a dose of Thundershock!" the Rocket commanded.

The magnets on the side of Magnemite's body abruptly began sparking, letting loose a blast of lightning that Porygon quickly ducked under, Demitri hopping back slightly to avoid being struck. He gave off a rather annoyed growl, Kibou laughing somewhat hysterically as Magnemite continued to attempt to blast Porygon. "Dance, ya little pile of blocks, dance!"

Porygon let out a rather annoyed beep, Demitri murmuring, "Don't worry Porygon, we're not lost in the woods just yet..." He proceeded to motion forward, calling, "Porygon, Sharpen!"

The Normal-type obeyed, its limbs sharpening and jutting outwards. Kibou chuckled lowly, mumbling, "Hmph...that won't possibly work. Thundershock!"

Another blast of lightning was shot forth, Demitri giving off a small smile. "Give it a Tackle! Snout, up!"

Kibou blinked as Porygon charged forward, abruptly flinging its snout upwards once the incoming attack had come close enough. The lightning blast swerved off course and smashed against Porygon's snout, seemingly attracted to the tip and landing innocently. Kibou's eyes abruptly widened, the Rocket growling, "He used its own sharpened limb as a lightningrod...?"

With the attack redirected, Porygon flipped the rest of its body around, managing to swing its sharpened tail into Magnemite's face, causing it to quickly close its eye with a metallic screech and back away as Porygon landed. Kibou let out a rather annoyed growl, Demitri folding his arms. "Still think I'm as simple an opponent to deal with?"

The Rocket clenched his fists together, giving off an annoyed growl. "Don't get cocky...I'm nowhere near done!" He pointed forward, shouting, "Magnemite, give him a Sonicboom!"

Magnemite abruptly opened its eyes, its magnets beginning to glow white and prompting it to begin spinning around rapidly. Several crescent-shaped shockwaves were flung at Porygon, who squeaked in shock and quickly began levitating out of the way, all of the attacks smashing into the walls with powerful crashes that sent a few more rocks tumbling down. Demitri gave off a rather annoyed growl as Porygon was forced to a stop, quickly swinging its limbs around in an attempt to combat all of the incoming shockwaves.

Kibou continues to watch with a wide grin, chuckling lowly to himself. "It's time I ended this little charade. Magnemite, Supesonic!"

Demitri's eyes widened slightly as Magnemite began letting out a loud buzzing sound, forcing Demitri to quickly cover his ears. Like with the last battle, however, Porygon was caught full force, halting in place as the rest of the shockwaves slammed into its body, sending Porygon flying into the wall with a painful crash and slowly slumping to the ground with a light beep. "Porygon!"

The teen quickly leaped to his Pokemon's side, Kibou laughing and stepping forward slightly. "Gotcha." Demitri glanced back at Kibou, who began stepping forward with his now dangerously sparking Magnemite. The Rocket's smirk broadened as he mumbled, "Looks like I've won. Any last words?"

Before Demitri could give a response, a rather familiar voice shouted, "Yeah! How about 'duck'?"

"...that doesn't make any sense," Kibou remarked blankly; he was, however, quickly forced to do just that as a pink blur smashed into Magnemite, slamming it into a wall rather harshly. "H-hey!"

Demitri's gaze went to the source of the attack; Anne abruptly charged forth, her Meowth at her side. Kibou glanced at the little girl, then at his Magnemite, who currently had a Jigglypuff standing over it threateningly. "Don't tell me you actually got your butt handed to you," Anne remarked with a slight frown, setting her hands on her hips.

"It's not exactly easy having to fight your way through several grunts and then this freakazoid all with a single Pokemon," Demitri responded plainly, standing up with Porygon in his arms.

Kibou let out a slight scowl, glaring at Anne. "You think that I'll roll over for a little girl?"

A vein abruptly popped from Anne's head, a growl escaping her lips as she shouted, "WHAT WAS THAT?"

With this comment, Magnemite slowly levitated back up with a slightly dazed expression; however, it was abruptly slammed with another flying tackle from Jigglypuff, pinning it to a wall as the pink blob began slapping its eye about rather quickly. "Just because I'm little doesn't make me any less of a threat!" Anne shouted rather angrily, Kibou blinking with his jaw hanging slightly agape, glancing back at Magnemite as Jigglypuff stepped away from the now unconscious Steel-type, panting lightly.

"...uh...I..." Kibou mumbled lowly, somewhat mechanically returning Magnemite as Anne began stomping towards him in a rather enraged fashion.

Demitri stood up slightly, mumbling, "Now it's about time we took you and the rest of your cronies in."

Kibou abruptly blinked and glanced at Demitri, stepping away from Anne slightly. "I don't think so! You may've won this round, but you haven't won the war!" He began dashing off, pointing threateningly at Demitri and Anne and shouting, "This isn't over! You haven't seen the last of-"

His comment was cut off when Kibou tripped over a nearby rock, smashing face-first into the ground and getting a wince from Demitri and Anne. "Ouch. That had to hurt."

A few moments passed, and Kibou slowly stood back up, glancing back at the duo somewhat dazedly. "Okay...NOW you haven't seen the last of me!"

The Rocket dashed off, Demitri and Anne remaining silent for a few moments longer before glancing at each other. "So you two managed to escape?" the teen mumbled lowly.

Anne sighed lowly, hanging her head. "Let's just say Ranoku's really resourceful when he isn't being...Ranoku."

"Informative," Demitri remarked plainly, returning Porygon to its Ball. "Where is he anyway?"

"Dealing with the leader of this operation," Anne respodned, folding her arms. "Come on, we've gotta go support him!"

**-Meanwhile-**

**Battle Re-cap**

**Pkmn Trainer Ranoku **  
**Slowbro (KO'ed by Venomoth)**  
**?**

**vs.**

**Team Rocket Executive Yakuin **  
**Venomoth**

"Flamethrower!"

The battle had turned aerial after Ranoku had unleashed Salamence, the two competitors darting about in the air and firing off several blasts towards each other. Several boulders and bits of ruined equipment now littered the entire battlefield, though the two combatants seemed more focused on destroying each other than worrying about the ravaged state of their battlefield. "Keep on it, that thing'll crack eventually!"

Yakuin didn't seem as worried as her Venomoth continued to flit about swiftly and easily, swirling about every so often as if to show off in an attempt to rile up its opponent. "Another Signal Beam, Venomoth," Yakuin commanded, several more rainbow blasts being fired at Salamence. The Dragon-type managed to avoid most of them, however, one of the blasts managed to strike at its wing, causing the dragon to screech and begin plummeting down, toppling to a rather painful halt.

"Salamence!" Ranoku called with a slight growl, Yakuin laughing as her Venomoth began descending slightly, preparing another attack. The teen growled lowly, mumbling, "We can do this...we won't be outclassed by some low-class crook..."

This was met with a frown from Yakuin, who motioned forward. "I'll show you low-class crook. Stun Spore, Venomoth!"

The Bug-type abruptly flapped its wings forward, sending forth a large cloud of sparkling yellow dust towards Salamence. The dragon gave off a light growl as Ranoku called, "Quick, into the air!"

Salamence obeyed, jetting into the air over the cloud and prompting Venomoth and Yakuin to look up. The Rocket chuckled, murmuring, "Such a persistant little pest...Venomoth, Bug Buzz!"

"Power through!" Ranoku commanded, stepping forward slightly and covering his ears in preparation for the attack. "Swat that thing to the ground with a Dragon Claw!"

The buzzing began, the air in front of Salamence distorting heavily and causing it to roar in anger; despite the potent attack, it continued to dash forth, Venomoth and Yakuin's eyes widening as the dragon smashed Venomoth into the ground with extended, glowing claws. A smirk finally carved its way onto Ranoku's mouth as Salamence let out a victorious roar, beginning to generate a ball of flames in its mouth. "Now for the finishing touch..." Ranoku murmured, motioning forward. "Flamethro-"

"Cut it off with a Psychic!" Yakuin ordered, frowning in irritation. Venomoth's eyes abruptly took on a bluish tint and smashed a psychic wave into Salamence's mouth, knocking it slightly upwards and causing the flames to spew off into the air, smashing the ceiling with rather powerful force and causing Salamence to flop onto its back. Yakuin's smile returned as Venomoth slowly lifted itself into the air, eyes still retaining a blue glow. Ranoku looked up with a slight grunt, his eyes trailing back to the ceiling, where some rocks were quickly becoming loosened. "Thought I'd be that easy to beat, didja...?"

Ranoku's gaze went back down to Venomoth and Yakuin, the teen pursing his lips slightly. "I'd watch out if I were you."

Before the Rocket could get anything from this comment, the rocks from the ceiling abruptly began falling down, Venomoth looking up slightly. Yakuin grunted and commanded, "Halt them with Psychic!"

Venomoth's eyes resumed glowing and halted the boulders, suspending them in midair and causing Yakuin to let out a slight sigh, finding Salamence slowly getting back to its feet, growling lowly. She narrowed her gaze, uttering, "You're not going to get me with tha-"

Her comment was cut off when a blast of rainbow energy went streaming past her head, smashing into Venomoth's back and knocking it to the ground, losing control of its psychic levitation of the rocks and causing them to fall all over it with, the Bug-type letting out a rather painful squeak. "What?"

Yakuin quickly whirled around, finding Demitri and Anne finally approaching; the attack coming from the still fairly weary Porygon floating alongside them. Meowth and Jigglypuff stood at the front, ready for combat. The Rocket let out a grunt, glancing at her now unconscious Venomoth. "Well, seems to me like you're outnumbered," Ranoku remarked, giving off a slight smile and folding his arms. "What'll it be?"

Everyone fell silent, Yakuin glancing between the two groups cornering her with a growl. She quickly returned the Venomoth to its Ball, murmuring, "Tch...it's safe to say this operation is a bust..." Yakuin proceeded to glance at Ranoku, pointing a finger and calling, "Don't get so high and mighty just because you've won this round. Remember, all Pokemon exist for the glory of Team Rocket!"

With this comment, she abruptly threw another ball to the ground, this one releasing a large smokescreen that quickly shrouded the area, hiding her from view. "Geh...Salamence!" Ranoku managed to cough out, the dragon flapping its wings about to dispel the smoke rather swiftly, revealing that Yakuin was nowhere to be seen. "Gah...she escaped..."

Demitri and Anne quickly approached Ranoku, the former murmuring, "You alright?"

"I'm fine," Ranoku responded, returning Salamence to its Ball and giving a slight stretch and groan, closing his eyes tightly as he did so. "Ah...that's better."

"What do we do now?" Anne remarked, looking around at all of the equipment. "Do we chase after them?"

Ranoku shook his head, finally dropping his arms to his sides with a slight sigh. "Nah...that's something we leave to the officials. We'll worry about Team Rocket the next time they decide to rear their ugly heads around us, but not now."

The teen glanced back at his two pupils, finishing, "For now, let's get out of here and head to Cerulean. It shouldn't be too far now."

A slight glance from Demitri and Anne, followed by a nod as the duo began following Ranoku out. What they had all forgotten, however, was the figure that had originally been tied up by Yakuin a short distance away. "Hello? I'm still tied up here! Hello?"


	22. Cerulean City

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 22-Cerulean City

After leaving Mt. Moon, it had become obvious that the trio's trek had taken up the entire day; by the time they arrived at Cerulean, it was nighttime. As a result, Ranoku suggested that they get some sleep before beginning to look around; there were no complaints.

The following day found the trio in the lobby of the Pokemon Center, currently in the middle of breakfast. "Alright, first on the agenda..." Ranoku began, pulling out a map from his satchel and scanning it over. "...we'll go to meet Bill."

This prompted Demitri and Anne to look up, the little girl echoing, "Bill?"

"That Pokemaniac who lives out on the cape?" Demitri added, earning a glance from Anne. He glanced back at her, seemingly translating her curiosity and explaining, "Come on, almost everyone knows who Bill is, why wouldn't I?"

Anne rolled her eyes in response, waving a hand about. "Whatever...you guys can go have fun with your nerd friend, I'm headed off for the Cerulean Gym."

With this comment, she hopped from her chair and glanced at Demitri and Ranoku, the latter giving a slight nod. "Alright then. Good luck."

The little girl gave off a smirk and chuckle before murmuring, "I don't need luck, I was trained by YOU."

Anne proceeded to skip off, Demitri staring after her before glancing at Ranoku, who nonchalantly took a swig of an energy drink can. "She's got a point."

"Yeeeaaahhh..." Demitri mumbled lowly, standing up and giving a slight stretch. "Moving on...Bill."

Ranoku nodded and stood up as well, the duo stepping out of the Center and now wandering towards the northern portion of the town. "Yup. One of the most renowned, if not THE most famous Pokemaniac in the world. Mainly because he-"

"Invented the PC system, I know," Demitri finished, Ranoku glancing at him with a slight stare.

"...yeah. But we're not here to get computer tips."

Demitri furrowed his brow slightly, murmuring, "Is that right...?"

Ranoku responded with a nod, taking another sip from his drink. "Yup. As a Pokemaniac, Bill's got all sorts of rare Pokemon."

Demitri blinked in surprise, the duo finally finding themselves crossing a rather long bridge going across a river. "You don't even know the MEANING of rare Pokemon until you've met him."

"If you say so," Demitri murmured, the duo beginning to walk off; unaware of a small figure in a patch of nearby grass spying on them.

**-Meanwhile-**

The Cerulean Gym was rather colorful and theatrical-appearing; this appealed rather greatly to Anne, who clasped her hands together with an adoring expression. "Woooooooooow..."

Without any further ado, she proceeded to enter the front lobby, the receptionist on the other end looking up. "Excuse me!" she called, looking up at said receptionist. "I'd like to challenge the Gym Leader!"

"I'm sorry," the receptionist responded, looking down at Anne. "She's in the middle of a performance."

This earned a blink from Anne, who tilted her head to one side. "A performance?"

The receptionist nodded, motioning to a nearby poster; it featured an orange-haired girl in a white swimsuit striking a pose with several different aquatic Pokemon. "The Leader of Cerulean Gym also participates in water ballet shows."

Anne's eyes seemed to widen and sparkle, opening her mouth with a rather wide grin. She quickly poked her head into the doors leading to the battlefield, peering through. Indeed, it featured a large pool with five stone platforms in the middle, as well as a diving board on one end. All around it were stands and bleachers of adoring and cheering fans, Anne looking all around in amazement. "Whoooooaaaaaa..."

Her gaze went back to the pool, where she noticed several other different aquatic Pokemon swimming about, performing several types of maneuvers and stances in a very theatrical and showy fashion. Swimming alongside them was the same orange-haired girl from the poster, who finally cataspulted herself out of the water and landed on one of the platforms, giving an elaborate bow as the crowd cheered. This was accompanied by a male voice calling from a loudspeaker, "Give it up for Misty, Cerulean's very own Gym Leader!"

More cheering from the stands, Anne staring at the apparent Gym Leader and giving a thoughtful smirk. "This ought to be fun..."

**-Meanwhile-**

A short walk later, and Demitri and Ranoku found themselves walking along a strip of land, sticking out towards the sea eastward. "Alright, we're almost there."

Demitri gave off a slight nod, only to halt in place. Ranoku glanced back at him, murmuring, "What?"

The teen's gaze slowly went towards a nearby rock jutting out of the ground, finding a creature sitting on top of it. A small, light brown creature resembling an imp with brown patterns on its chest and tail resided there, facing them. Its eyes were closed shut, and it was currently sitting down with its head bowed slightly, giving the impression that it was asleep.

_Abra, the Psi Pokemon. Sleeps 18 hours a day. If it senses danger, it will teleport itself to safety even as it sleeps._

Ranoku folded his hands into his pockets, tilting his head to one side. "Huh. This ought to be a really good chance for you to catch another Pokemon. Abra are pretty powerful."

Demitri glanced back at Ranoku with a slight blink. "Is that right?"

"Yup," the teen responded with a nod. "Just be careful, they like to teleport."

Demitri responded with a slight nod, glancing back at Abra and pulling out a Poke Ball. "I'll keep that in mind."

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Wild Abra **  
**Location: Route 24 **  
**Wild Pokemon Battle**

The button on the device was pressed, resulting in Porygon emerging amongst a flash of light and a few shivers. "Alright, sleepyhead..." Demitri's comment seemingly caused the little imp to tilt its head up ever so slightly, the teen uttering, "You're mine. Porygon, Psybeam!"

With this command, several blasts of psychic energy were fired at Abra, who abruptly vanished into thin air, appearing on the ground a short distance away. Demitri furrowed his brow as several more blasts were fired at it, the Abra expertly teleporting out of the way of each strike and generating a few clouds of smoke in the process. Demitri narrowed his gaze as the small cloud dissipated, revealing Abra perched back in the same spot as before.

"Remember, it likes to teleport!" Ranoku called, now having wandered quite a distance away from Demitri.

One of said teen's eyes twitched, and he called back irritably, "I heard you the first time!"

He glanced back at Abra, his gaze going to Porygon. "I'm not going to be outdone by a Pokemon in its sleep...you WILL be taken down."

**-Meanwhile-**

Several minutes passed after Ranoku had left Demitri to deal with the Abra, and he now stood at the edge of the cape, overlooking the sea with serious expression. He sipped form his energy drink, murmuring, "Pretty."

He proceeded to crush his can in his hand and dropped it in a nearby bin, turning around to a somewhat large house set up on a nearby cliff. Ranoku furrowed his brow and approached the building, clearing his throat and tapping on the door. "Hel-"

"Go away!"

Ranoku paused for a moment, retracting his hand with a slight blink. "Um...hello?"

"Didn't you hear me? Go away!"

A few moments passed in silence, Ranoku furrowing his brow; the voice didn't exactly sound angry, more or less plain frightened. "Is Bill home?"

The voice seemed to begin to respond, only to change its comment halfway. "Er...nope! No Bill here!"

Ranoku fell silent for several moments, slowly turning around. "Well...thanks anyway."

On the other side of the door, a small figure leaned against the door, its triangular ear pressed up against the door and listening as the sound of Ranoku's footsteps became more and more faint. A few more moments passed in silence, the round, little, pink creature sighed and leaned against the door, hanging its head. "That was close..."

A few moments passed in silence, the creature looking up slightly in thought. "Hm...maybe..." It shook its head, murmuring, "N-no...I can't possibly ask for help with this..."

Despite this thought process, said figure finally opened the door ever so slightly, poking his head out. Ranoku, however, was already gone. The little pink creature slowly wandered out a little more, mumbling, "D-drat...he's gone."

"GOTCHA!" A loud squeal ensued as Ranoku abruptly dropped down from above, landing on the creature and causing the duo to scramble about before Ranoku finally managed to pin it down and stare at it. "...huh. Just a Clefairy."

_Clefairy, the Fairy Pokemon. Adored for their cute looks and playfuln-_

"I'm not a Clefairy!" the little creature responded hastily.

This prompted a surprised blink from Ranoku, who very slowly stood up off of the Pokemon. "You...can talk? Pokemon can't talk..."

"That's because I'm not a Pokemon!" the little Clefairy responded haughtily. "I'm Bill!"

Ranoku and the small creature exchanged a blank stare, the teen finally pointing at it and mumbling dumbly, "You...Bill?"

The little Clefairy nodded in response. "I was in the middle of an experiment involving my new teleporter...it malfunctioned and I ended up switching bodies with my test subject."

"Which...was a Clefairy."

Bill nodded once again. "But now I can't get the teleporter to work, because the remote is in the tube with my body in it. And I can't risk letting a Clefairy loose in my body!"

Ranoku gave off a slight nod. "I see..."

"So the only way I can work it is from my computer, but I can't do that; I have to be in the teleporter when it activates or else..."

Bill trailed off, Ranoku furrowing his brow slightly. "Or else what?"

The Clefairy shook its head, mumbling, "I don't know, but I don't want to take any chances." Bill looked back up, asking hastily, "Can I get you to help me, please?"

A smirk found its way onto Ranoku's face. "Of course. Just lead the way."

The Clefairy responded with a relieved sigh and bowed quickly. "Th-thank you, thank you! Come on, I'll lead you to my teleporter."


	23. Bill the Pokemaniac

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 23-Bill the Pokemaniac

Almost an hour of non-stop battling had passed since Demitri challenged the Abra, however, his success was limited. He and Porygon currently sat against a nearby tree, panting heavily while the still untouched Abra sat nearby, eyes still closed and giving an occasional soft snoring. Demitri looked up slightly, giving a slight grunt and mumbling, "We're...not done yet..."

The teen slowly pulled himself back to his feet, pulling out another Poke Ball and glancing at Porygon. "Let's try a change of tactics..."

This earned a nod from the Virtual Pokemon and prompted Demitri to slowly stand up, staggering from side to side before opening up the other Poke Ball. In a pillar of light, Aerodactyl emerged forth, bending down and giving a large, ear-splitting scream that caused a barely noticeable shudder to run down Abra's spine; the motion rebuffed Demitri's confidence a bit. "Alright Aerodactyl, give it a dose of Supersonic!"

The Fossil Pokemon took a deep breath before leaning forth with an ear-splitting screech, distorting the air in front of it and causing Abra to noticeably wince, leaning down slightly with a grunt. Demitri proceeded to quickly pull out another Poke Ball, uttering, "Alright, now that it's disoriented..."

With a slight grunt, Demitri hurled the Poke Ball forth, impacting Abra and causing it to wince further as the device opened up, abruptly sucking the Psi Pokemon inside before closing shut. Aerodactyl closed its mouth as the device began shaking about, giving an occasional beep and shiver as Demitri leaned forth slightly. "Almost...almost...almo-"

Demitri's comment was abruptly cut off when the Ball burst back open, his eyes shooting open as Abra emerged from the light, now standing up and glancing at Demitri through closed eyes. The teen gritted his teeth in anger, grunting, "Gah! So close!"

Before he could make another command, however, the Abra abruptly teleported away, prompting Demitri and Porygon to quickly begin looking around in anticipation for the reappearance. A few seconds of waiting, however, and Abra didn't appear. Demitri fell silent for a few moments, looking around and giving an irate sigh. "It must've gotten away..."

**-Meanwhile-**

"So...this is it?" Ranoku asked, looking up at the room they had entered; it had several computers here and there, but the main focus was the two large, metal tubes at the end of the room, both connected by a smaller horizontal one on the sides. Ranoku's gaze went to a nearby computer with wires hooked up to the large device, Bill hopping towards the empty tube.

"Yes, this is it. My experimental teleporter!" the little Clefairy called, glancing at Ranoku. "There should be some instructions on the computer screen on how to initiate the process."

Ranoku nodded and approached the aforementioned computer, looking over the several screens adorning it as Bill opened one of the tubes, hopping inside. "Alright...aaahhh...you see how it works?"

"Uh huh," the teen mumbled, his eyes glazing over all of the miscellaneous screens and going right towards a rather important-looking red button on the screen. "Instructions...mhm."

Without another word to be said, Ranoku clicked the red button, resulting in a loud humming coming from the two cylindrical machines and causing the insides to begin glowing. "OoooooooIIIIIIIIIII feeeeeeeeeel fuuuuuuuuuunnyyyyyyyyyyyy..."

"Oh, and for future reference, I'm a little more genre savvy than you give me credit for," Ranoku remarked, sipping from his can nonchalantly. "'Read the manual' pales in comparison to 'big red button'."

"What?" Bill called in a rather surprised expression, only to be cut off by a large flash of light and a resounding shimmering sound coming from the machine. "Gah!"

All throughout the exchange, Ranoku continued to sip his drink, pulling a pair of sunglasses from his satchel to cover his eyes from the bright flash. Not long afterwards, the flash died down, Ranoku slipping off his sunglasses and sipping from his drink. Both doors abruptly opened, bringing with them a cloud of steam. "Gentlemen...BEHOLD!" Ranoku shouted in a needlessly theatrical fashion, motioning to the teleporter. His gaze then went to his now empty can, prompting him to add, "I AM ONE CAN SHORT OF A SIX PACK!"

Amidst some coughing, a human figure slowly staggered out of the opposite end Bill had originally entered; a somewhat short and wiry human wearing a blue polo shirt and khaki jeans with unkempt light brown hair. He took several pants before looking up, groaning. "Did it work...?"

Ranoku stepped towards the human, murmuring, "You tell me, didja get your body back?"

The male stood up straighter, looking himself over with a contemplative expression before beginning to smirk widely. "Yup...it worked! I got my body back!"

"Great," Ranoku remarked, beginning to pat him on the back. "Now, you got a fridge somewhere around here? I wasn't kidding earlier, I am a can short of a six pack and I always make sure to have at least six minimum with me at all times."

**-Meanwhile-**

About an hour later, the crowd that had previously been watching the water show began flooding out, speaking to each other over the events that had transpired. Anne, who had been waiting in the lobby, looked up upon noticing them leave and quickly wormed her way through the crowd, mumbling, "Excuse me, pardon me, Gym challenger, coming through!"

She looked up at the pool, where she noticed Misty currently sitting on the edge, drying herself off. Anne gave off a small smirk and began slinking her way closer to the pool, calling, "Hey! Hey! Excuse me!"

The girl blinked and slowly looked over at Anne as she approached, giving a slight pant. "Sorry kid, but I don't really have the time for autographs."

Anne slowly looked up with a small frown, mumbling, "I'm not here for an...autograph, I'm here for a battle!"

Misty gave a surprised blink and leaned back slightly, Anne pointing a rather energetic finger towards her. "I'm after a Gym badge, so let's make it short, sweet, and to the point! Got it?"

A few moments passed in silence, the Gym Leader looking away with a small smile and chuckle. "Well now, you're feisty, aren't ya?" She slowly stood up and wrapped her towel around her neck, turning to Anne and saying, "Very well, I suppose we can have our little battle."

A smirk carved its way into Anne's face, the little girl chuuckling and nodding. "Got it!"

**-Meanwhile-**

"Thank you."

Ranoku snapped open another can and began sipping away at it as he and Bill stood in the front room of his home, the Pokemaniac leaning back slightly with a small smile. "No no, I should be thanking you for your help. If you hadn't have come I'd still be trapped in the body of a Clefairy."

"Mhm," the teen mumbled with another slurp, lowering his can and staring at Bill. "It was nothing."

"No, really," Bill remarked, stepping forward and giving a slight bow. "If there's anything I can do to repay you, please, don't hesitate to ask."

Ranoku instead gave a slight shrug, looking away and mumbling, "Mmm, nah, don't feel obligated..."

Before Bill could say anything else, a knock was heard at the door, prompting Bill to step towards it and open the door. On the other end was a rather frazzled and visibly annoyed Demitri, who occasionally gave a slight twitch as his Porygon poked its head from over his shoulder. "Oh, hi Demitri," Ranoku remarked, lifting up his can. "How'd it go?"

"Do you need to ask...?" the teen mumbled rather irritably, stepping past Bill and casting a slight glare at Ranoku.

"Just making sure," he responded with a slight shrug, glancing at Bill slightly. "Oh, that's Bill."

Demitri glanced at the male for a moment as he gave a somewhat nervous smile and nod. "Er...yeah. I'm Bill, inventor of-"

"PC system, Pokemaniac, yadda yadda, I know," Demitri responded impatiently, glancing back at his mentor. "Ranoku, can we please get back to the Pokemon Center, I'm no longer in the mood to listen to someone show off rare Pokemon."

The teen gave off a rather unimpressed pout, mumbling, "Hmph, killjoy...alright, maybe we can check on-"

"Ranoku?" Bill echoed, turning his gaze to the aforementioned teen and causing his eyes to widen slightly. "You mean...Ranoku Taikin?"

"That's my name, don't wear it out," the teen responded with a small smile, causing Bill's formerly surprised gaze to turn into one of pure shock.

"Y-you're serious?" Another nod from Ranoku and a curious glance from Demitri, and Bill began beaming with barely contained excitement. "A-amazing! What are the odds that someone like you would show up here at all?"

Demitri furrowed his brow slightly, glancing at Bill and mumbling, "Pardon my interruption, but...why are you suddenly spazzing out?"

Bill turned to Demitri and began rather excitedly, "You don't know? Ranoku's a very powerful Trainer that's won many different League challenges! He actually holds the record for being the youngest Trainer to ever win the League! Not to mention his nearly unmatched streak!"

This prompted Demitri to very slowly glance back at Ranoku, wearing a less than interested expression as his mentor began blushing a bit and rubbing the back of his head. "Yeeeaaahhh, we all know I'm amazing, but we don't need stats like that to prove it..."

"What are you even doing out here anyway?" Bill asked curiously, stepping forward with a blink.

Ranoku glanced back at Bill, sipping from his drink before explaining, "I'm training my two students. Demitri here's one of them, the other is at the Cerulean Gym working on getting her Gym badge."

"Aaahhh, I see!" the Pokemaniac responded with a nod, glancing at Demitri. "You know, you're lucky to have such a talented mentor!"

"I'd be a little more grateful if he weren't a goof," the teen responded bluntly, rubbing a hand through his hair. Ranoku instead lifted his drink seemingly in agreement, giving a carefree shrug as Demitri turned around. "C'mon, let's get back to the Center, I need to rest up a little after that affair..."

Ranoku gave a slight nod as the duo began walking towards the door, only for Bill to step forward and speak up. "Wait, wait!" Both glanced back at him as he began digging through one of his pockets, murmuring, "Ranoku, this is the least I can do for your help..."

"What's he talking about?" Demitri mumbled flatly, glancing at the teen who waved his hand about to dismiss the question.

"Here," Bill remarked, placing a small slip of paper in Ranoku's hand. The teen looked down at it, taking note of the inscription of a boat on it and the words "S.S. Anne" emblazoned underneath. "It's a ticket to the S.S. Anne in Vermillion City."

Demitri gave a slight blink and looked down at the ticket, mumbling, "Huh...and you'd be fine giving it to us? I've heard it's a pretty prestigious cruise..."

"Aahh, don't worry about it," Bill responded, waving his hands about and smiling innocently. "I wasn't planning on going anyway; I can't stand fancy dos and stuff like that."

Ranoku looked down at the ticket again, murmuring, "You really don't have to-"

"I insist, please!" Bill responded, giving a slight step forward. "I'd feel terrible for asking your help and not giving anything back in return."

Demitri glanced at Ranoku slightly, mumbling, "He was just gonna let it go to waste anyway..."

"...eeehhh, alright," Ranoku resonded with a nod, looking up at Bill. "Thanks."

"It's no problem at all!" the Pokemaniac responded with a smile. "Now...what was that you had said a moment ago about rare Poke-"

Bill's comment was, however, cut off when Demitri dragged Ranoku out of the door, closing it rather unceremoniously and leaving him, expression frozen with a droning, "Uuuhhh..."

"Well that was rude," Ranoku remarked, brushing himself off as he and Demitri began walking away from the building. "You coulda let him finish."

"Not interested," Demitri responded rather flatly, closing his eyes with a slight sigh. "Let's just get back to Cerulean so I can start making preparations for my Gym battle."

"Whatever," Ranoku responded with a slight shrug, the duo walking alongside each other for several more moments. Finally, the older teen glanced at Demitri out of the side of his eye and mumbled, "Incidentally...did you even manage to get it in the Ball?"

Demitri cast a rather hateful glare at Ranoku; the teen's serious expression, however, prevented him from dismissing it as an attempt at being funny. "...yes. I got it in the Ball, but then it escaped and teleported away."

"Oohh," Ranoku responded with a slight nod. "And you used a normal Poke Ball?" Demitri's blank stare told Ranoku that he was correct, prompting the teen to close his eyes in thought. "See, that's why it got away."

Demitri furrowed his brow in thought as Ranoku glanced back at him, explaining, "Poke Balls come in more than just the standard model, you know. There are more powerful Balls out there. Which is what she said."

Ignoring his mentor's hysterical giggling afterwards, Demitri turned back to the path they were walking on, his Porygon casting him a glance. "So...you're saying I should get a stronger brand of Poke Ball."

"Exactly," Ranoku respodned, seemingly becoming just as serious as before in an instant. "I don't think Anne's beaten the Gym Leader yet, so we'll swing by the Mart, and this time I'll stand by to watch you try and catch Abra."

Demitri slowly glanced back at Ranoku with an unimpressed stare. "It's been around an hour, you don't think Anne has at least finished her battle by now? I don't think she's THAT inexperienced."

"It's not that she's not skilled," Ranoku explained, sipping from his can again. "The Gym Leader holds water acrobatic shows at her Gym, so Anne's probably having to wait for the performance to finish before she can get her battle."

Demitri gave a slight blink and nodded. "Right..."

"Also," Ranoku suddenly remarked, planting the slip of paper Bill had given him into the younger teen's chest and causing Demitri to stop. "There, you keep it."

Demitri looked up with a slight blink, mumbling, "Bill gave it to you, you should-"

"I don't need it," Ranoku responded plainly.

This prompted Demitri to take a slight step forward, mumbling, "Don't tell me you think you're too cool for-"

"I don't need it because I already HAVE one," Ranoku responded, abruptly whirling to Demitri and flashing two similar tickets in Demitri's face and causing him to stop. "Two actually. One for me and one for Anne. Now that you've got one, we can go on the S.S. Anne together."

Demitri stared at Ranoku for a moment, looking down at his ticket, then back up at Ranoku. "...you could've told Bill you already had a ticket."

"But that wouldn't be any fun," the older teen responded, whirling back around and sticking the tickets into his jacket. "Now c'mon, we've gotta get you some Balls. Which is what she-"

"I get it, stop with the testicle jokes, you're worse than a pre-teen with a heightened sense of self-importance..."

Ranoku stopped to glance at Demitri, the teen looking back at him expectantly. "...well? Aren't you gonna give us a cutaway?" This comment was met with Demitri flipping his hand upwards, knocking the energy drink can out of Ranoku's hand and splattering soda all over him.


	24. Capture At The Cape

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 24-Capture At The Cape

Several minutes after returning from the bridge, and Demitri found himself standing in front of a blue-roofed building with a sign on the side reading "Cerulean City Poke Mart". Next to the sign was a display case portraying several different types of equipment, though Demitri was only given a passing glance as Ranoku dragged him inside.

"Welcome, may I help you?" a nearby clerk called, Ranoku dragging Demitri towards the counter.

"Yes, we're going to need some Great Balls," Ranoku began, looking at his empty drink can. "...and some six packs of Creature."

"Right away, sir," the clerk responded, Demitri finally looking up; all throughout the shop were several shelves of goods, ranging from Potions, to cases, to various Poke Balls with different colors and designs. Some posters adorned the walls advertising different products, and calming music played throughout the entire store. "There you are, sir."

Ranoku was handed two plastic bags adorned with a Poke Ball design; while one Demitri was able to recognize the many inactive Poke Balls inside, the other larger one he believed had Ranoku's canned beverages. "Thank you, my good man," Ranoku remarked with a nod, paying up some money and dragging Demitri out once more.

"Stop that," the teen finally uttered once they were outside, swatting Ranoku's hand away.

The older teen simply gave off a shrug and handed Demitri the bag of Poke Balls, saying, "We got some of your standard-issue Poke Balls in there. Great Balls, Ultra Balls, Net Balls, Timer Balls, Repeat Balls, all the Balls you'll ever need and then some. Which-"

"Make another testicle joke and I'll shove one of those cans down your throat," Demitri uttered venemously, Ranoku pausing from opening one before following through and snapping it open.

"...geez, testy," he uttered flatly, taking a sip of his beverage. "Anyway, let's get back to the bridge and bag an Abra. By that time, I bet Anne'll be done with her Gym match."

The duo began walking off at this, unaware of three other figures stepping out from an alleyway behind them, watching the both of them depart. "There they go," the eldest, female voice murmured, sweeping about her long, dark-colored hair. "We'll head them off at the bridge."

"Agreed," the middle boy uttered, giving off a wicked smirk and bowing his head slightly. "Demitri...you're as good as beaten."

**-Meanwhile-**

Anne and Misty now stood across from each other, facing the pool the Gym Leader had been formerly performing inside of. "The rules are simple," the receptionist from before called, now standing in between both participants on the edge of the pool. "This is an official Gym battle between Anne of Goldenrod City, and Misty, the Cerulean City Gym Leader. Both sides will use two Pokemon, and the first to knock out both of their opponent's Pokemon will be declared the winner. Are both participants ready?"

The little girl nodded in response, both participants pulling out a Poke Ball and winding up their throw. "Let's begin!" Misty shouted.

**Battle Situation**  
** Pkmn Trainer Anne vs. Gym Leader Misty **  
**Location: Cerulean City Gym **  
**Single Battle**

Both devices were hurled forth, bursting open and revealing their Pokemon; Bellsprout formed itself on one of the three platforms set up around the pool, while a golden-colored, star-shaped Pokemon with a red gem set in the middle amidst a metal setting appeared in front of it.

_Staryu, the Star Shape Pokemon. As long as the center section is unharmed, it can grow back fully even if it is chopped to bits._

Anne proceeded to point forward rather dramatically, calling, "Let's get this show on the road! Bellsprout, Vine Whip!"

The flower-like Pokemon proceeded to extend a pair of vines from underneath its leaves, both whips shooting towards Staryu, who expertly hopped over the vines in response. "Give it a sweep!" Anne called with a frown, the vines making a horizontal swing towards Staryu; instead, however, the Water-type twisted about, causing the vines to whizz right through the opening left by its rotating limbs and only resulting in it spinning faster, soon becoming little more than a rotating wheel.

Misty smirked rather widely, pointing forward forcefully and calling, "Now Staryu, give them a Tackle!"

Using its spinning motion, Staryu landed on the platform and shot towards Bellsprout, who abruptly blinked and hopped to the side, Anne shouting, "C'mon, whack it with a Vine Whip!"

The Grass-type shot its vines towards Staryu once again, however, it managed to expertly hop off of the platform, clearing the water and landing on another platform before skidding to a halt. Anne grunted slightly, mumbling, "Flightly little thing..."

"Staryu, blast it with a Water Pulse!" Misty shouted, Staryu bending down slightly and shooting a ball of water from the tip of its head, flinging it towards Bellsprout.

Anne's eyes widened slightly, the girl hastily shouting, "Quick, leap into the air to dodge!" Bellsprout abruptly retracted its vines once more, planting them on the ground and using them to catapult itself into the air, Staryu looking up at it. Anne gave off a slight smirk, shouting, "Now, give it a dose of Stun Spore!"

Bellsprout obeyed, arching its head back and abruptly spewing forth a large cloud of sparkling, yellow dust towards Staryu. Misty gave off a blink, motioning forward and shouting, "Staryu, quick, blast it with a Water Pulse!"

The Star Shape Pokemon responded by shooting another ball of water towards Bellsprout, the Flower Pokemon blinking; gravity had began pulling it back towards the ground at this time, leaving it unable to avoid the water orb as it punched a large hole in the Stun Spore cloud, smashing into Bellsprout and causing it to begin plummeting back towards the platform. "Bellsprout!" Anne gasped, watching as the Grass-type flopped to the ground.

It began slowly trying to get itself back up, however, it was visibly shuddering and freezing up at points, wincing. Anne's eyes widened a bit more, the girl grunting, "Wh-...what's..."

"It seems your Stun Spore was turned against you," Misty responded with a smile, folding her arms. "When Staryu hit with that Water Pulse, the incoming Stun Spore was mixed in with the attack. Meaning, your Bellsprout was hit with a Water Pulse AND Stun Spore at the same time, leaving it paralyzed."

Anne gave off a rather irate grunt, Misty leaning her head to the side with a confident expression and waving a hand about. "One of the reasons I love Water Pokemon so much...very adaptable to any situation. Enough to be able to take out a Pokemon they'd normally have a disadvantage against."

Anne quickly reached into her bag and yanked out Bellsprout's Poke Ball, in the process causing some of the items inside to shift about, including a familiar black stone sliding out and clattering to the floor. The little girl looked down with a gasp, shouting, "My Moon Stone!"

She quickly reached for it, however, her rather hasty maneuver resulted in her accidentally kicking it towards the pool, the stone plopping inside and sinking out of view. Anne gawked at the display, Misty giving a blink and sigh. "Well that's a shame...don't worry, when we're done I'll fish it out for you."

"Thanks..." Anne mumbled lowly, finally managing to return Bellsprout and revealing another Poke Ball, tossing it forth and releasing Jigglypuff in a column of light. The pink puffball did a quick pirouette in midair before alighting on the ground, glancing at Staryu across from it. "I may be at a disadvantage now, but I am far from done!" Anne shouted defiantly, pointing towards Misty. "That Gym Badge WILL be mine!"

**-Meanwhile-**

Within minutes, Demitri and Ranoku had returned to the other side of the bridge, now looking about where Demitri could see the scorch marks from Porygon's missed assaults in his first encounter. "...well geez Demitri, you didn't go completely apeshit on it, did you?"

The teen cast his mentor a hateful stare for a moment, only to be interrupted by a familiar shimmering sound, prompting him to look around. Perched on a tree branch was the familiar body of Abra, seemingly staring at the duo through closed eyes. "There it is."

Demitri pulled out a Poke Ball at this, Ranoku sipping from his drink with a slight smile. "Good luuuuuuuck."

"I don't need luck," Demitri uttered, tossing the Ball forth and abruptly releasing Porygon, the Virtual Pokemon shivering before lookin up at its familiar opponent. "Let's teach that thing some respect. Porygon, blast it with Psybeam!"

The Normal-type obeyed, firing off several beams of light at Abra; the Psi Pokemon warped away once more, causing the attacks to impact the branch and blowing it to pieces, while Abra itself reappeared in front of Porygon, tilting its head up ever so slightly. "Psybeam once more!"

Porygon fired off several more attacks, smashing into the ground as Abra warped away from each strike, the repeated blows beginning to kick up a small cloud of dust that partially hid the battlefield from sight. Taking advantage of this cover, Demitri slowly reached into his pocket, pulling out two fistfulls of inactive Poke Balls - all of various types - and silently rolled them into the battlefield into the cloud. Ranoku couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, humming to himself as the cloud cleared. Abra itself reappeared as well, tilting its head up and giving off a slight hum in curosity; the entire battlefield was now littered with Poke Balls.

"Abra uses a psychic radar to detect danger and avoid attacks," Demitri mused thoughtfully, folding his arms as Porygon descended ever so slightly. "That doesn't make it any less blind to something that DOESN'T pose an actual threat."

Ranoku couldn't help but give off a slight chuckle, closing his eyes and mumbling, "Well now, look who's using the ol' noggin..."

Demitri gave off a slight nod, pointing forward and calling, "Porygon, swoop at it with a Tackle!"

The Virtual Pokemon was quick to charge towards Abra, the imp-like creature quickly warping out of the way. It reappeared dangerously close to a nearby Poke Ball, its tail brushing up against it and causing it to look about in confusion. "It's working," Demitri mused, unable to suppress a slight smirk. "Keep going, Porygon!"

Beeping rather excitedly, Porygon turned around and made several more swoops at Abra. Each time it would reappear close to a Poke Ball or multiple ones, causing it to noticeably begin adopting an anxious expression from the various unfamiliar stimuli it was experiencing. This momentary distraction enabled Porygon to successfully score a hit, smashing into its face and sending it toppling backwards, knocking a few of the Poke Balls out of the way in the process. "It's down," Ranoku remarked, glancing at Demitri. "Now'd be as good a time as any to try again."

Demitri nodded in response, quickly scooping up one of the Poke Balls in front of him; a blue one with a red design on either side. "You're mine!" he shouted, hurling the device at Abra and impacting it directly; the device opened up and abruptly enveloped the Psychic-type in a red light, sucked inside of the Ball and rolling to a halt. Demitri stepped forth slightly, eyes trained on the Ball as it tossed about, giving off an occasional tap that led Demitri to believe it was attempting to escape. A few moments later, however, and the Ball gave off a light beep, the movements stopping and causing Demitri to come to a halt, giving off a slight sigh. "It's over..."

"Congrats," Ranoku murmured, clapping his hands together somewhat slowly and crushing his empty drink can. "That's three Pokemon for your team."

Demitri glanced back at Ranoku, beginning to scoop up the scattered Poke Balls; he was, however, cut off by a different clapping sound from behind, followed by a familiar voice uttering with a thick layer of sarcasm, "Oh yes, VERY well done. It was SO inspirational, I think I might shed a tear."

Ranoku's gaze immediately turned sour as the duo turned around, quickly taking notice of a familiar dark-haired female teen approaching from behind a nearby stone, a sickeningly sweet smirk on her face. "Ilohe," Ranoku uttered rather venomously, crushing the can in his hands even further. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I just happened to be in the neighborhood and though I'd check up on my favorite pain in the ass," Ilohe responded blandly, smirking once more and turning towards Ranoku.

The teen responded by rather swiftly replacing his crumpled drink can with a Poke Ball, pointing the device at Ilohe and uttering, "Do you really want a repeat of Viridian Forest? You don't have a method to lock us in this time, so your loss is going to be even MORE humiliating than before."

Ilohe responded with a hysterical laugh, tilting her head back and causing Demitri to furrow his brow. Porygon gave off an irate beep as the girl finally lowered her head, uttering, "Oh, that's a good one...I hate to disappoint you, Ranoku, but I'm not going to be the one battling today."

The comment caused both teens to blink in surprise, Ranoku lowering his Ball slightly. "What?"

"I'm not here to battle you, Ranoku," Ilohe explained, placing a hand on her hip and leisurely gestering a finger towards him.

"Then who is...?" Demitri murmured lowly, only to be cut off by another voice from behind the duo clearing their throat. "Wait..." the teen uttered, quickly turning around, his eyes widening upon noticing the blue-clothed, blonde-haired boy and the shorter, sandy-haired boy next to him. "Zack?"

"The one and only," said Trainer responded, closing his eyes with a wide smirk and rubbing his knuckles on his shirt. "We haven't gotten a chance to interact since Viridian Forest..."

A few moments later, and Ranoku looked back at Ilohe, suddenly breaking out into a smile and beginning to snicker uncontrollably. "Wait...you two...are...working together now?" Ranoku's snickering turned into full-blown hysteria, the teen tilting his head back and uttering, "I hate to break it to you Ilohe, but trying to take advantage of 'beginner's luck' is probably the dumbest idea you've ever come up with."

"He's not battling you, moron," she uttered with a frown, tilting her finger towards Demitri. "He's here to battle HIM." Demitri gave off a surprised blink, Ilohe stepping to the side and calling, "What do you say, Ranoku? My student versus your student?"

The message seemed to click in Ranoku's mind, the teen giving off a surprised blink and running a hand through his hair, sighing. "You can't honestly expect to think this counts as beating me..."

"It might not," Ilohe remarked flatly, frowning and pointing forward. "I like to think of this more as a personal victory...I know your ego won't like taking a bruising like that."

Ranoku's rather irate expression only seemed to support her comment more, Demitri giving a sigh and turning away lowly. "Sorry, but we've got business to take care of that doesn't involve dealing with you."

"Demitri," Ranoku uttered rather quickly, not even glancing at the teen. "One of the fundamental rules of being a Trainer...NEVER turn down a battle without good reason."

The teen slowly turned towards Ranoku with a blank expression, folding his arms and uttering, "You're not serious, are you? We should go and meet up with Anne, maybe we'll get to see SOME of her Gym battle."

"Anne will be fine," Ranoku responded bluntly, glancing at Demitri out of the side of his eye and adopting a deadly serious expression. "Demitri, unless you want to bring disgrace on yourself AND me, I suggest you battle."

Demitri stared off with Ranoku for a moment, narrowing his gaze; this was definitely unlike the teen Demitri had become accustomed to prior. Finally, he gave off a sigh and uttered, "Fine..."

Ilohe smirked rather widely, chuckling lowly and folding her arms. "That's more like it...Zack?"

Said boy stepped forth, Demitri turning to him as Porygon leaned forward with a low buzz. "It's time I got revenge for what happened in Viridian Forest."

"Don't get cocky," Demitri uttered, Porygon levitating forth slightly. "I may have needed Anne's help last time, but this time, I won't need it to thrash you."


	25. Battles in Cerulean City

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 25-Battles in Cerulean City

**Battle Re-cap**  
** Pkmn Trainer Anne **  
**Bellsprout (KOed by Staryu)**  
**Jigglypuff**

**vs.**

**Gym Leader Misty **  
**Staryu **  
**?**

Misty gave off a fairly confident smile, folding her arms as her Staryu's core gave off a slight blink. "Well, you're awfully spirited...I like that. This battle ought to be fun after all." She motioned forth, calling, "Staryu, let's make her work for this Badge! Water Pulse!"

The Starshape Pokemon abruptly bowed its head, shooting a pulsating ball of water towards Jigglypuff. The puffball quickly hopped into the air, curling into a ball and beginning to rotate. It lightweight body caused it to descend rather slowly, quickly building speed and causing Misty to blink. Anne only smirked back, pointing forward and calling, "Hit it with a Rollout!"

The moment Jigglypuff impacted the platform, friction took effect and caused it to rocket forth, giving off a spray of water from the soaked platform in the process and forcing Staryu to quickly attempt to hop over the attack; however, it wasn't quick enough and was struck from the bottom, causing it to twirl about as Jigglypuff skidded to a halt, the Water-type flopping onto its front in the process. "Yes!" Anne shouted, Jigglypuff giving an elaborate bow as Staryu hopped back to its feet and turned towards its opponent.

"Don't celebrate just yet," Misty responded, closing her eyes with a chuckle. "Staryu, Water Pulse again!"

Another ball of water was shot towards Jigglypuff, who gave a blink before quickly ducking, its body seemingly squishing into a pancake shape as the attack passed over it. "Hehe!" Anne called tauntingly, waggling a finger towards her opponent. "You missed!"

Misty only gave off a small frown as Jigglypuff stood back up, beginning to charge towards Staryu directly. "Tackle it!" Misty quickly commanded.

"Respond with a Pound!" Anne responded back, the two Pokemon impacting several times, darting about the stage and exchanging a smack and tackle, finally skidding to a halt away from each other before lunging once more. Jigglypuff instead held up both hands, quickly slamming into Staryu and causing the two to halt in place, struggling to overpower the other.

Misty smirked slightly, the tip of Staryu's head giving a slight blue glow. "Hm...I wouldn't have gotten into such close quarters if I were you..."

"Oh would you have...?" Anne responded with a low chuckle, still smirking a bit. The expression caused Misty to give a small frown, furrowing her brow in thought as Anne's eyes went towards the orb of water on top of Staryu's head.

"Staryu, stop the attack and get out of there!" Misty quickly shouted, the water orb quickly dissipating as Staryu leaped backwards. Anne, however, simply gave a smirk in response, chuckling lowly and causing Misty to blink. "What-"

"Rollout!" Jigglypuff very quickly kicked off of the ground, curling tightly into a ball and propelling forth at a high speed. Staryu was unable to avoid fast enough, and was slammed into with considerable force, impacting the core directly and sending it toppling backwards, skidding to a halt on another platform while Jigglypuff alighted rather delicately on a different one. Staryu's core gave off a few flickers before finally dimming, a wide smile finally finding its way onto Anne's face. "Yes! Gotcha!"

Misty returned Staryu to its ball, giving a small smile and looking up at Anne. "Well well...that was impressive. Maybe you'll have a chance after all."

Anne simply folded her arms with a cocky expression, chuckling to herself as Misty pulled out another Poke Ball. "Maybe. You haven't won just yet." With this comment, Misty tossed her next Poke Ball forth, abruptly unleashing a pillar of light that formed into a somewhat familiar Pokemon; it had the same star shape as Staryu, however, there was another similarly-shaped and sized layer underneath it, a more elaborate gem set in the core, and a purple coloration.

_Starmie, the Mysterious Pokemon. The evolved form of Staryu. Its central core glows with the seven colors of the rainbow. Some people value the core as a gem._

Anne gave a slight blink, watching as Jigglypuff took a slight step back. "Starmie, the evolved form of Staryu," Misty explained, folding her arms with a smile. "I'm sure you know all about Pokemon evolution, don't you?"

"A Pokemon morphs into a stronger form, usually by experience," Anne responded, giving a slight frown.

"Yes, yes, that's right," Misty responded with a smile. "You might've been able to take down my Staryu...but will you be as good at taking down one better with just your Jigglypuff? It took two of yours to take down Staryu itself."

Anne gave a slight frown, Jigglypuff pumping its hands up with a serious expression. "Don't think I'm beaten just yet," the little girl responded, clenching her fists and leaning forth slightly. "Jigglypuff, let's show that we're not gonna give up so easily! Give it a Pound!"

With this command, Jigglypuff quickly chared towards Starmie, the Water-type looking down slightly as its opponent lunged at it, winding up a fist. "Give it a Rapid Spin!"

Starmie expertly leaped over Jigglypuff, abruptly spinning about like a wheel and descending forcefully towards the Balloon Pokemon, the spinning motion sending it flying off to the side rather quickly, smacking onto the ground outside of the pool. Starmie stood on the side and looked down at Jigglypuff as it stood back up, Anne calling, "Are you alright?"

The Normal-type gave a nod, quickly hopping up and landing back on a platform, Starmie turning towards it. "Give it another Rapid Spin," Misty called, Starmie hopping into the air and quickly spinning about, shooting towards Jigglypuff at a high speed. It quickly hopped over the attack, the spinning motion generating a slight gust that knocked it momentarily off balance, Starmie skidding to a halt on another platform. "Now, Swift!"

Starmie's core began glowing, giving off a spray of glowing, star-shaped projectiles that slammed into Jigglypuff's body, sending it toppling to a halt, barely stopping at the edge of the platform. Anne's eyes widened slightly as Jigglypuff barely managed to stop itself from falling in, giving a pant. "Wh-whew..."

"Good to see you've got some insight," Misty called with a smile. "I'd avoid turning it into an underwater battle too if I were in your position too."

"Against a Leader who specializes in Water-types? Please, that was a given..." Anne responded with a slight frown. "Jigglypuff, give it a Rollout!"

The Normal-type nodded, quickly curling into a ball and shooting towards Starmie. In response, the Mysterious Pokemon hopped up, beginning to spin about with a Rapid Spin, abruptly deflecting Jigglypuff as it impacted, skidding about on another platform before turning around and shooting towards Starmie once again. "C'mon! We'll get it!" Anne called, Misty giving a small chuckle.

"Stubborn much...Rollout may get stronger the more you use it, but will your Jigglypuff be able to take enough punishment to enable it to get to max power?" Misty asked almost rhetorically, Starmie twisting about to deflect Jigglypuff once more, the Balloon Pokemon now skidding along the water and kicking up a spray from the speed it was traveling. Starmie and Jigglypuff impacted a few more times before Jigglypuff came to a halt on one of the platforms, giving a slight pant and staring at Starmie defiantly. The Water-type alighted itself on a different platform, staring off at Jigglypuff and causing Anne to bite her lower lip in anxiety.

"Seems your Jigglypuff's getting tired," Misty called, folding her arms with a serious expression. "Maybe you should just call it quits now?"

"No!" Anne responded defiantly, Jigglypuff holding up its hands in defense. "One of the lessons my mentor taught me to never forget was not to give up, no matter how difficult the situation was! And even if the odds are against me..." She proceeded to point forward, Jigglypuff mimicking her motion perfectly. "...then I'll go out in a blaze of glory! My pride is at stake here!"

Misty stared off at Anne for a few moments, only to smirk back and chuckle lowly, closing her eyes. "...very well then. Starmie, give it another dose of Swift."

The Mysterious Pokemon obeyed, its core giving off another spray of stars that forced Jigglypuff to quickly hop about, attempting to avoid; however, it was only able to avoid long enough until it slipped over the wet surface, Anne's eyes widening as Jigglypuff flopped onto its back. "Jigglypuff!"

With the Balloon Pokemon unable to react, Starmie's Swift smashed into it, sending Jigglypuff toppling over the platform, landing with a splash into the water, sinking in. "Jigglypuff!" Anne gasped, leaning towards the surface and watching as the silhouette of Jigglypuff disappeared into the water.

Misty fell silent for a moment, watching the bubbles that signified Jigglypuff's location continue to rise upwards. "...Starmie, go after it," the Gym Leader commanded. The Mysterious Pokemon dove in obediently, disappearing into the water as well; a few moments passed, however, before a faint light began shining from below. Both participants blinked slightly, Misty murmuring, "What is...?"

Before she could finish her comment, the location the bubbles were rising seemingly exploded, giving off a large pillar of water that forced Anne and Misty to look up. "What?"

Anne was forced to step back to avoid being drenched by the falling spray, Misty blinking as Starmie landed back on the platform, looking up with its core giving off a blink. Another figure descended on the opposing platform; on first glance, it was Jigglypuff, however, it was noticeably larger and more oval-shaped, as well as having two much longer, pointed ears that almost seemed like rabbit ears. It swirl on its forehead remained, however, its feet were also quite a bit longer, and its belly was completely white. Anne's eyes widened, Misty murmuring, "What...is..."

"Jigglypuff evolved!" Anne exclaimed rather excitedly, leaning forward with a wide grin. "Jigglypuff evolved into Wigglytuff!"

**-Meanwhile-**

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Pkmn Trainer Zack **  
**Location: Route 24 **  
**Single Battle**

Zack quickly pulled out a Poke Ball, Demitri matching his smirk with a serious expression. "We'll both use three Pokemon. Sound fair?"

"Knowing Ilohe, that won't stop her from tipping the scales in her favor," Ranoku piped up, both teens casting each other a hateful glare.

"Ahem," Demitri called, his Porygon floating forth slightly. "This match is between me and Zack, not you two. Let's keep it that way."

Ilohe only smirked widely, waving a hand about and uttering, "Whatever you say..."

Ranoku only scowled at the female, glancing over at Demitri and uttering, "I suggest you be on your toes...this isn't just a battle for your honor. My dignity's on the line too."

Demitri closed his eyes, giving off a rather blunt sigh and uttering, "Feh...I'm not battling for honor. I'm battling to get this over with."

With this comment, Zack tossed his Poke Ball forth, abruptly releasing a brown-colored bird Pokemon; it had striking similarities to his Pidgey, with the exception of a large crest of red feathers sticking from its forehead, trailing behind it.

_Pidgeotto, the Bird Pokemon. The evolved form of Pidgey. This Pokemon is full of vitality. It constantly flies around its large territory in search of prey._

Demitri furrowed his brow in curiosity, his Porygon levitating forward as he murmured, "So...you evolved your little bird since last time."

"Got that right," Zack responded confidently, folding his arms and tilting his head up slightly. "I see your tinker-toy hasn't changed a bit since we last met."

Porygon beeped rather furiously at this, levitating forth a little more as Demitri narrowed his gaze. "Wrong. He's gotten stronger since we last battled. Allow me to demonstrate. Psybeam!"

The Normal-type was quick in firing off a blast of psychic energy at Pidgeotto, who flew up into the air to avoid, leaving Porygon to try and blast after it. However, the swift bird managed to evade each strike before beginning to dive down towards its opponent. "Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto abruptly shot forth at a high speed, slamming into Porygon's side and causing it to buzz in irritation, tilting to the side as Pidgeotto swooped around, preparing for another dive. Demitri narrowed his gaze, calling, "Conversion 2!"

Porygon's body gave off a bright glow, beginning to take on a rather reflective tint and causing Zack to frown. "Tch, I'm not going to fall for the same trick again..."

"Good," Demitri responded, Porygon turning around to face Pidgeotto. "I'd be disappointed if my rival were that stupid. Tackle!"

With this comment, the Virtual Pokemon abruptly charged towards Pidgeotto, the bird quickly swerving to the side to evade, though this didn't stop Porygon from twisting about and smacking it with its tail, knocking Pidgeotto off course. Zack frowned as Porygon turned to face it, Demitri calling, "Another Psybeam, go!"

Porygon quickly fired off the aforementioned attack, Pidgeotto barely avoiding the attack and flying up higher into the air. Ilohe gave a frown that made Zack grunt in irritation, growling, "Pesky little...Gust, Pidgeotto!"

The Bird Pokemon gave off a rather loud shriek, beginning to beat its wings powerfully and sending a current of wind towards Porygon. It gave off another irritated buzz and winced, looking away from the assault and shivering as the wind lashed at it. Ilohe's frown turned into a smirk as she glanced at the still steel-gazed Ranoku, Demitri covering his eyes slightly and staring at Porygon as it weathered the assault. "C'mon...power through..." Demitri murmured, narrowing his gaze. The Virtual Pokemon gave another buzz and began levitating upwards, attempting to fight through the gust.

Zack gave a frown, Ilohe clearing her throat rather noisily. "You do realize that you're not going to KO it at this rate. It may have some boosted defenses, but that doesn't make it indestructible! Crush it!"

This comment seemed to motivate Zack into reacting, the pre-teen smirking before pointing forward. "Alright Pidgeotto, Quick Attack! Knock it right out of the sky!"

Another shriek, and the Bird Pokemon shot down towards Porygon, said Virtual Pokemon looking up with a surprised beep as its opponent shot down towards it. Demitri gritted his teeth together, shouting, "Quick, Psybeam!"

Porygon just barely managed to fire off an attack quick enough for it to explode in Pidgeotto's face, engulfing both combatants in a cloud of smoke and causing Demitri and Zack to lean forward in anxiety. A few moments later, however, and Pidgeotto had been tossed back, flopping to a halt and attempting to stand up, only flopping back down, unconscious. "No!" Zack growled, looking up as the smoke cleared to reveal a still standing Porygon.

"Score one for me," Ranoku remarked, smirking and glancing at the once again scowling Ilohe. "Care to try for two?"

Zack returned Pidgeotto at this, Demitri calling Porygon back to his side and pulling out another Poke Ball. His eyes trailed down to the two he had left, his eyes falling on Abra's for a moment. "...not sure what else he may have in mind...so I'll save you for last," the teen murmured, watching as Zack tossed his next Poke Ball forth, unleashing a familiar, purple rat that crouched with a slight growl.

"A Rattata?" Ranoku echoed, giving off a slight snicker before glancing at Demitri. "Shoulda kept Porygon out to exterminate it."

"Nah. He was too exhausted," Demitri responded plainly, pulling out another Poke Ball. "I won't need him to win against this one."

With this comment, he tossed his next Poke Ball forth, the resulting light abruptly taking the form of Aerodactyl. The Fossil Pokemon gave off a loud shriek, Zack and Hayden's eyes widening in shock as they both took a step back. "Shoulda known that Aerodactyl in Pewter was your doing," Ilohe uttered, glaring at Ranoku with a frown. The teen simply ignored this and took another sip from his drink.

Demitri shifted his glasses about as Aerodactyl took another step forward, growling lowly and staring down at the much smaller Rattata. Said rat looked back up with a mortified expression, giving off a terrified and shaky squeak as Zack gave a slight growl. "C'mon, Rattata, let's do this!"

The rat could only gulp as Aerodactyl bowed its head down, giving an ear-splitting screech that forced everyone to cover their ears while the air distorted around them. Rattata, its face seemingly beginning to go pale, abruptly collapsed onto its side, seemingly having fainted from fright. "You've GOT to be kidding me," Zack uttered with a frown.

"Bravo, bravo," Ranoku remarked, beginning to clap rather slowly and glancing at Ilohe. "Your student's got some mighty brave Pokemon there."

Ilohe gave off an irate snarl, turning towards Zack and barking, "That's the third Pokemon you had before we began this teaching thing? That thing was pathetic! You're going to replace it the first chance we get!"

Demitri could only frown slightly as Zack began fishing about for another Poke Ball, returning Rattata and pulling out another. "Tch...so you've gotten me on the ropes...I'm not down yet; I still have one more Pokemon up my sleeve." A smirk found its way onto Zack's face as he added, "One that's hungry for revenge."

Ranoku raised an eyebrow slightly as Zack tossed his next Poke Ball forth, abruptly releasing a somewhat small, red liard-like creature; Demitri was reminded of Charmander, with the sole exception of its longer, clawed limbs, crimson coloration, and noticeably meaner expression. A single horn protruded from the back of its head, and a flame was emitted from the tip of its tail. Demitri blinked lowly, murmuring, "That's..."

_Charmeleon, the Flame Pokemon. The evolved form of Charmander. Tough fights could excite this Pokemon. When excited, it may blow out bluish-white flames._

Zack chuckled lowly as his Charmeleon crouched slightly, giving off a wide, toothy smirk to match that of its Trainer. "You may've been able to win against Charmander...but against Charmeleon it's a whole 'nother story! This time, I KNOW I'm going to win!"


	26. Mistake

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 26-Mistake

**Battle Re-cap **  
**Pkmn Trainer Anne **  
**Bellsprout (KOed by Staryu)**  
**Jigglypuff Wigglytuff**

**vs.**

**Gym Leader Misty **  
**Staryu (KOed by Jigglypuff)**  
**Starmie**

_Wigglytuff, the Balloon Pokemon. The evolved form of Jigglypuff. The body is soft and rubbery. When angered, it will suck in air and inflate itself to an enormous size._

Misty paused for a few moments, Anne's eyes continuing to sparkle as her smile faded slightly. "wait...but Jigglypuff can only evolve with a..."

"Moon Stone," Misty finished, looking up and folding her arms. "When you dropped yours into the water earlier, its energies must've melded with the waters in the pool. So when your Jigglypuff fell in, it enabled it to evolve."

Anne's attention went back to the Normal-type as it twirled around, giving off an ecstatic smile and victorious squeak. The Trainer herself smirked as well, clenching her fists and uttering, "Perfect...now my victory is for certain!"

"Is that what you think?" Misty asked, smirking back before motioning forth. "An evolution isn't going to be enough to win this one! Starmie, Water Pulse!"

Several star-shaped energy blasts were fired from the gem in the middle of Starmie's body, Wigglytuff looking up slightly. Anne proceeded to pump a fist forward, shouting, "Let's crank up the volume, Wigglytuff!"

With this comment, the Balloon Pokemon leapt into the air, the star-shaped blasts proceeding to turn about in midair, following after their target. Wigglytuff looked down, only to abruptly open its mouth and begin taking a deep breath, its body beginning to expand outwards as air was sucked in. Misty gave off a slight blink before Wigglytuff let out a sonic scream, generating a powerful shockwave that distorted the air before it and crashed onto the pool from above, shattering the Swift attack and forcing Starmie onto its front from the force. Misty covered her ears, groaning lowly, "A Hyper Voice?"

"When I said crank up the volume, I wasn't being serious..." Anne grunted back, holding her head as the attack halted, Wigglytuff now preparing to land. Anne looked up, calling, "Keep up the assault with a Rollout!"

Misty was barely able to look up in time to see Wigglytuff curl into a ball, spinning about and shooting towards Starmie. "Nngh...Starmie, quick, Rapid Spin!"

The Water-type managed to push itself back onto its feet, leaping into the air and spinning about like a wheel. Wigglytuff landed on the ground where Starmie once was, only for its elastic body to cartoonishly squish upon hitting the ground, only to ricochet off and smack into the spinning Starmie, knocking both combatants off course and landing back on the ground. While Wigglytuff landed firmly, Starmie staggered about upon landing, the core in the middle of its body beginning to blink. Misty's eyes widened, the girl murmuring, "Oh no...Starmie, Recover!"

The gem in Starmie's body abruptly began glowing, the light extending to the rest of its body and causing Anne's eyes to widen. "No! We can't give it that opportunity! Wigglytuff, keep up the Rollout!"

With this command, the Normal-type curled up into a ball once more, shooting towards Starmie, who slowly looked up as its gem returned to its former luster, signifying that Recover had finished. "No!"

"Yes," Misty responded with a smile, pointing forward. "This match is over! Starmie, Water Pulse!"

Starmie lowered its head, quickly firing off a large orb of pulsating water towards Wigglytuff, Anne's eyes widening. "Quick, kick off the ground!"

Right before the attack landed, Wigglytuff managed to plant its feet onto the ground, abruptly kicking downwards and enabling its now unfurled body to leap over the Water Pulse, Misty and Starmie both looking up with a surprised expression. "What the..."

Anne's smirk returned, and she pointed forward rather forcefully, shouting, "NOW is when we finish it! Body Slam!"

Wigglytuff took in another deep breath, its body beginning to inflate outwards once more as its descended swiftly towards Starmie. The Mysterious Pokemon could only give off a small beep before being smashed into by the swollen Pokemon, Misty's eyes widening as Wigglytuff bounced off, spewing out the built up air and landing expertly on its feet. "Starmie!"

Despite this, the Water-type's now slightly cracked gem gave off a few more blinks before sputtering out, becoming dim and signifying its depleted energy. "YES! I won!" Anne abruptly cheered, pumping a fist into the air energetically.

Wigglytuff had span about, giving off several incoherent wails and mimicking holding out a microphone to its mouth. During this time, Misty had walked over to Anne on the other side of the pool, the little girl glancing at her as she approached. "Well, it seems you've beaten me," Misty uttered, slowly reaching into her coat with a small smile. "And for that, you've won the Cascade Badge."

With this comment, Misty pressed a small object into Anne's palm; a small, blue, teardrop-shaped pendant. Anne pocketed it, giving a nod and smirking. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," Misty responded with a nod, looking up. "I'd suggest you head south, to Vermillion City next."

Anne proceeded to twirl around on her heel, waving a hand about and saying, "Goooooot it. But I've gotta check up on my mentor and this other guy I travel with. Probably still at the cape chatting about dorky stuff like computers and collections."

**-Meanwhile-**

**Battle Re-cap **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri **  
**Porygon **  
**Aerodactyl **  
**?**

**vs.**

**Pkmn Trainer Zack **  
**Pidgeotto (KOed by Porygon)**  
**Rattata (KOed by Aerodactyl)**  
**Charmeleon**

Demitri and Aerodactyl both gave off a slight blink as Charmeleon stomped forcefully on the ground, giving off a slight growl; it was a large difference when compared to the docile Charmander Demitri had seen prior. "Tch, you're in over your head, kid," Ranoku called leisurely, waving a hand around. "Demitri, show that overgrown salamander what a real dino's like."

The teen gave a slight nod, looking up at Aerodactyl. The Fossil Pokemon stepped forward slightly, only to get down on all fours and give off a massive screech towards Charmeleon, forcing it to wince and turn away slightly. Not too long after it had done so, however, Charmeleon turned back towards Aerodactyl with an unimpressed stare, giving off a growl before Zack shouted, "Give it a dosage of Dragon Rage!"

Charmeleon obeyed, abruptly shooting off a large blast of energy at Aerodactyl's face and causing it to screech in anger from the attack, staggering back and covering its face. Ranoku's smile faded as the blackened Aerodactyl glanced back down at Charmeleon, who was now glaring at it with glowing eyes and a malevolent smirk. The action caused the Rock-type to quickly dive behind Demitri, quivering and peering behind its Trainer nervously. Everyone fell silent as one of Ranoku's eyes twitched, Ilohe abruptly bursting into spontaneous laughter, holding her sides and bowing slightly. "Wow Ranoku, I'm VERY impressed! I didn't think it was possible to raise such a cowardly Pokemon!"

"Demitri!" Ranoku barked in a rather annoted fashion, the teen glancing at him with a glazed expression and gently rubbing the side of the pterodactyl's head. "What the hell is it doing?"

"It's scared," Demitri responded blandly, returning Aerodactyl to its Ball. "After being returned to a world wildly different from its own, you'd expect it to be."

"But to get intimidated by a Scary Face from something not even half its size?" Ranoku shouted back, the can in his hand quivering angrily.

Demitri gave off a rather irate frown, waving a hand about. "Don't get your panties in a wad, I've still got two Pokemon left."

With this comment, the teen tossed forth his next Ball, abruptly releasing Abra to the field. It looked up ever so slightly at Charmeleon, who gave off another wide smirk as some flames leaked from its mouth. "This oughta be good," Zack remarked with a wide smirk. "Ember!"

Several blasts of flame were shot towards Abra, Demitri motioning forth and calling, "Dodge with Teleport!"

Abra abruptly vanished out of the way, Charmeleon blinking as the Psychic-type reappeared behind it. "Now hit it with a..." Demitri slowly trailed off, glancing over at Ranoku and murmuring, "...what else does Abra know again?"

"Teleport."

Demitri fell silent, staring at Ranou expectantly. "...and?"

A few more moments passed in silence, Ranoku staring at Demitri with a serious expression. Finally, Ilohe's explosive laughter returned, the girl hunched over and earning a glance from Demitri. "Ranoku didn't tell you? Teleport is all Abra can do! It doesn't have any offensive attacks!"

Demitri's eyes shot open and he cast a rather hateful glare at Ranoku, the teen frowning and shooting back, "Well I didn't know you'd be thrown into a battle with my honor at stake! I was gonna save that revelation for a time when it'd be funny and NOT at my expense!"

"Some teacher you are..." Demitri uttered in a rather irritated fashion, turning back to Abra, who continued to attempt to avoid all of Charmeleon's attacks, Zack, Hayden, and Ilohe continuing to give off several hysterical laughs before Abra alighted itself on Demitri's back, ducking under his shoulder with a nervous squeak. The teen proceeded to return Abra to its Ball, Ilohe finally wiping a tear from her eye and stopping her laughter long enough to speak.

"Well Ranoku, it's only taken one of my student's Pokemon to completely change the flow of this battle!" Ranoku cast Ilohe another glare, the teenage girl putting a finger to her chin in thought. "I'll be nice and offer you a chance to surrender now before you're made into an even bigger fool than you already are."

"Up yours, bitch!" Ranoku spat back, turning to Demitri with a rather irritated glare. "You'd better take out that Charmeleon or I'M going to take YOU out!"

This only earned another hysterical cackle from Ilohe, who remarked rather energetically, "I was wondering whether you actually flew that way!"

Ignoring the barrage of laughter from his opponents and the obscene shouting from Ranoku, Demitri tossed his final Poke Ball forth, releasing Porygon to the field. It gave a shiver before looking up, Charmeleon's smirk returning. "This battle isn't over yet. Porygon, hit it with a Psybeam!"

With this command, Porygon fired a blast of rainbow-colored energy towards Charmeleon, Zack looking up just in time to shout, "Dodge and retaliate with Dragon Rage!"

Charmeleon quickly hopped to the side as the attack smashed into the ground, charging up a ball of energy and shooting it towards Porygon. The Virtual Pokemon ducked under the attack, Demitri calling, "Now Sharpen and hit it with a Tackle!"

All of Porygon's flat edges rather abruptly popped outwards into rather pointed, triangular protrusions as it charged forward, preparing for a stab with its now blade-like nose. Zack furrowed his brow and commanded, "Block it with a Scratch!"

Charmeleon extended its claws, quickly beginning to swat Porygon's bladed protrusions away with great proficiency, both sides grunting and buzzing from the repeated swipes and stabs. Finally, Charmeleon managed to grab a hold of Porygon's bladed nose, causing the Virtual Pokemon's eyes to widen as its opponent tossed it to the ground, shattering the blade and causing the rest of its sharpened portions to abruptly dissipate. Demitri and Ranoku's eyes both widened, the former shouting, "Quick, get out of there!"

"Blast it with Dragon Rage!" Zack ordered, Charmeleon attempting to fire a blast at point-blank range. Porygon barely managed to scramble away from the explosion as it was fired, levitating back as Charmeleon continued to attempt and blast it, the Normal-type avoiding each attack with seemingly increasing difficulty. Demitri had begun gritting his teeth together as Zack gave off a hysterical laugh, pointing forth and shouting, "Just about done now! Get it with a Scary Face!"

Charmeleon's eyes abruptly widened and gave off a bright glow, Porygon glancing at it with a shocked expression and suddenly causing it to flinch. Ranoku gripped his drink tighter, causing it to crumple ever so slightly and sending some of its contents leaking out the top. "Demitri, attack it NOW!"

"Psybeam!" said teen commanded, Porygon firing off a blast of psychic energy towards its Fire-type opponent.

Ilohe, however, smirked, uttering, "Hmph...I thought it'd come to this. Zack?"

Said boy gave off a slight nod, shouting, "Overpower it with a Dragon Rage!"

Charmeleon abruptly shot forth another blast of energy, impacting Porygon's Psybeam and quickly beginning to shred through it, Demitri and Ranoku's eyes widening. "What?"

The attack landed with a powerful explosion on Porygon, resulting in the Virtual Pokemon giving off a rather loud buzz before collapsing with a dull thunk to the ground, shivering slightly. Demitri's eyes widened as it attempted to slowly get up, the teen biting his lower lip. "Porygon..."

"It's not down yet," Ilohe uttered rather flatly, glancing at Zack. "We need a decisive KO, got it?"

The boy nodded in response, pointing forward and commanding, "Ember!"

Charmeleon quickly opened its mouth, firing off a large barrage of flaming darts towards Porygon. It was completely unable to avoid and was smashed by the attack, pinned to the tree behind it and causing it to give off several frantic buzzes and distorted beeps, Demitri's eyes widening slightly as he watched several char marks appear on the Virtual Pokemon's body, some parts of it denting slightly form the excessive force and heat. The attack finally resulted in Porygon's pupils being replaced with "x"s, signifying a KO. No one else, however, seemed to notice, the attack keeping on and causing Demitri to clench both fists. "STOP!"

The teen's rather forceful command caused Zack to blink and glance at him with a curious expression, lifting a hand and signalling for Charmeleon to halt its assault. Ilohe gave a small frown, glancing at Zack and shouting irately, "Hey! Just because your opponent tells you to stop doesn't mean you do it!"

Demitri had taken the opportunity to dash to Porygon's side, scooping up the charred and burnt body of the Virtual Pokemon and causing Zack to blink before glancing at Ilohe. "It's KOed, that's why he told me to stop, genius."

Ilohe gave a slight blink, glancing at Porygon's responseless expression and causing her to shrug. "Fair enough. Next Pokemon, let's get to i-"

"I forfeit," Demitri rather abruptly responded, his response causing Ranoku to abruptly spew the contents of his beverage all in front of him.

"You WHAT?" the teen barked in an unbelievable fashion, turning to Demitri as he cast him a rather serious expression.

"I'm not going to battle for YOUR reputation and honor if this is what's going to happen." Demitri's gaze went to the battered and charred body of Porygon, which gave a rather weak beep before going limp once more. "I'm going to the Pokemon Center. You win."

Zack gave off a slight blink as Ilohe's smirk widened, the girl folding her arms with a rather victorious laugh. "Hah! Who's the better teacher now, Ranoku?"

The girl glanced at her rival as he stepped forcefully towards Demitri, shouting, "Get back here! This battle isn't over yet! I forbid you from forfeiting to any Trainer, ESPECIALLY not her!"

"First, I didn't forfeit to her, I forfeited to Zack. Second, I don't care," Demitri responded rather forcefully, turning towards Ranoku with a hateful glare. "Joining up with you was a mistake. This whole journey was a mistake. I'm going to the Pokemon Center, having my Pokemon rejuvenated, and then I'm going back home."

Without another word to be said, Demitri began walking off, Ranoku continuing to stare at him with an expression of disbelief and an enraged expression. "Wow Ranoku, I didn't think you were THAT bad a teacher!" Ilohe remarked with a light giggle, turning towards Zack and Hayden. "Come on, our next stop is Vermillion."

Hayden gave a slight nod and glanced at Zack, who continued to stare after Demitri with a blank expression before glancing back at them. "...right."

The trio proceeded to walk off at this, just in time for the image of Anne to be seen rushing along the bridge with a large, victorious grin on her face. "Hey! Hey! Guys! I won!"

"Don't care," Demitri uttered rather blankly, walking right past her and causing Anne to pause, looking after him with a large frown.

"Hey! Don't ignore me like that! I'm talking to you! HEY!" When Demitri didn't respond, Anne fell silent, glancing back at Ranoku as he approached. Upon noticing the teen's rather sour expression, Anne's smile faded slightly. "...what's wrong? What happened?"

"Nothing," Ranoku responded rather bluntly, tossing his now empty drink can to the side, Anne watching as it clattered harmlessly to the ground. "You got the Cascade Badge, right?" Anne's nod prompted Ranoku to pull forth a Poke Ball, releasing his Salamence in a pillar of light. "In that case, we're headed to Vermillion."

Anne gave off a surprised blink, glancing down the bridge as Demitri disappeared over it. "What about Demitri? We're not gonna wait for him?"

"No," Ranoku responded, clambering onto the dragon's back. "As of now you're my only student."

The little girl paused, glancing back at Ranoku before giving a wide smile. "I thought you'd NEVER say that!" Without another word to be said, she hopped onto Salamence after Ranoku, the dragon roaring once more before taking off into the air, its tail smashing Ranoku's discarded can before rocketing off into the setting sun.


	27. Battle for the Cascade Badge

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 27-Battle for the Cascade Badge

Demitri now sat on a bench outside of the operating room of the Pokemon Center, his head ducked down and his unkempt hair completely hiding his face. Abra currently sat next to him and constantly glanced at its Trainer with a hint of worry, tilting its head to one side slightly and giving a low moan. The teen looked up ever so slightly through his glasses, staring at the glowing symbol hanging above the double doors he was sitting across; a syringe on a red background, meant to let people know whether the doctor was working or not. Demitri finally heaved another sigh and looked back down, closing his eyes.

The teen was, however, torn by a faint beep while the red background from the overhead machine faded, the same pink-haired nurse stepping out with a somewhat large and egg-shaped pink Pokemon with rather stubby hands and feet staggering along behind her.

_Chansey, the Egg Pokemon. A gentle and kind-hearted Pok mon that shares its nutritious eggs if it sees an injured Pokemon._

"Nurse," Demitri uttered, finally standing up and prompting Abra to glance up slightly at him. "How is he?"

"Your Porygon will be just fine by tomorrow," the nurse responded with a smile, hands folded in front of her. "It was in pretty rough shape, but nothing we couldn't handle."

The teen slowly looked down, his arms drooping down. "That's...that's good..."

"First time, yes?" Demitri blinked and slowly looked back up at the now stoic-faced nurse. "It's hard for most new Trainers when their Pokemon gets their first major injury and has to be brought here for special treatment."

Demitri pursed his lips slightly, the rather jarring memory of Charmeleon ruthlessly blasting Porygon coming back to him. "Yeah..." he uttered lowly, looking back down.

"If you're truly serious about being a Pokemon Trainer, it's something you'll have to get used to," the nurse continued, resting her hand on Demitri's shoulder and causing him to look up slightly. "No matter how experienced you may be, there will always be that one battle or opponent you can't win against and will suffer a very painful loss to. The important thing is to move on, and remember that everything will work out in the end."

With this final comment, the nurse walked off with her Pokemon, Demitri and Abra glancing after her while the teen slowly strolled towards the double doors. He peered through into the room; Porygon was laying on an operating table, all of the dents having been buffered out and some bandages on the most damaged places. A few wires were attached to its body and various machines, monitoring its status. Demitri closed his eyes and turned around towards Abra, steadily scooping it up into his arms. "She's right...Porygon's going to be alright, and that's what counts. If I want to avoid something like that happening again, then all I have to do is get stronger."

Abra nodded with a slight squeak in response, Demitri turning around towards the end of the hallway and beginning to walk off. "And I don't need Ranoku or Anne for that...all I need are you guys."

**-The following day-**

Beams of sunlight had only began piercing into the room when Demitri's eyes snapped open; Ranoku's unorthodox method of waking him up the last few nights had made the teen keen on awakening early. He slowly lifted his head from the pillow and twisted himself into a sitting position, stretching his arms out and standing up. Abra currently sat in a chair in a corner of the room, a very faint, almost inaudible snore being heard coming from the Psychic-type. Demitri scooped it up onto his shoulder and began pulling his clothes on, soon returning to the lobby and approaching the desk the nurse was stationed at. "Ah, good morning," she remarked with a smile, Demitri nodding back.

"My Porygon?" he asked, the nurse nodding and turning around.

"One moment please." Demitri continued to wait patiently as the nurse disappeared into the back, waiting for several moments and closing his eyes in thought. He didn't have much time to dwelll on anything before he heard footsteps approaching once more. "There we are!"

Demitri slowly looked up, just in time to quickly stagger back as his now completely healed Porygon slammed into him, beeping energetically with a pleased expression in its eyes. Demitri's usual scowl finally creased into a small smile as he began petting the Virtual Pokemon's head, murmuring, "Good to see you're still in one piece..."

"Now then, what are you planning on doing?" the nurse asked, tilting her head to one side and prompting Demitri's serious expression to return. He slowly looked up, narrowing his gaze and prompting Porygon to glance around at her as well.

"I've got a Badge to win."

**-Later-**

Demitri now stood before the flashy-looking Gym, keeping his gaze narrowed and prompting Porygon, currently floating by his side, to glance at him expectantly. "I've heard the Gym Leader was a performer...not a big surprise that this place stands out so much."

With this comment, Demitri pushed open the doors to the Gym, stepping into the lobby and prompting the receptionist on the other side to look up in surprise. "It's...awfully early, the next show doesn't start in-"

"I'm here for a Gym battle," Demitri cut her off, the girl blinking and sitting up a bit more. "Is the Leader in?"

"Yes, she is..." the receptionist responded, glancing at the double doors. "Right through there."

"Thank you." With this comment, Demitri stepped through the doors, blinking upon noticing the large stadium, filled with rows upon rows of empty seats, and an enormous pool and tank in the middle. He was barely able to notice the orange-haired Gym Leader currently doing warm-up exercises at the edge, only to look up when Demitri began approaching the tank. "Excuse me. Misty, right?"

The girl nodded and stepped towards the edge of the tank to peer down at Demitri, setting her hands on her hips. "That's me. Who're you?"

"Demitri Douniiru. I'm here for a Gym battle." Misty couldn't help but blink in surprise when Demitri introduced himself, the teen closing his eyes with an exasperated expression. "...yes, current generation of Douniiru."

"I thought you had that particularly powerful air about you," she remarked with a smile, leaning back. "C'mon up here and we'll get started."

Demitri gave a slight nod and began climbing up the ladder leading to the top of the tank, now able to peer over the large pool and the three platforms set around them. "You're up awfully early, even for some of the more experienced Trainers I've seen."

"Yeah, ah..." the teen uttered lowly, rubbing the back of his head and looking away slightly. "I've had to have been waking up early lately..."

"Oh, I see," Misty mused with a small nod, the both of them taking their spots at the stage. "Anyway...we'll both be using two Pokemon, alright? You know the rules, yeah?"

"Of course," Demitri responded, his eyes trailing to Porygon in thought. "I can't use Aerodactyl because she uses Water-types...but Abra can't fight either because he doesn't even KNOW anything..."

Porygon stared back at Demitri, almost as if it were already understanding his request. "I know you've just been through a really difficult fight with Zack, but..."

Demitri didn't get to finish his sentence as Porygon levitated forth over one of the platforms, Misty smiling slightly. "Alright...let's get this show on the road!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Gym Leader Misty **  
**Location: Cerulean City Gym **  
**Single Battle**

Misty tossed her first Poke Ball forth, the device bursting open and unveiling the yellow-colored Staryu inside. The Water-type landed on one of the platforms as Porygon narrowed its gaze, Misty pointing forth. "Let's kick things off with a Water Pulse!"

With this command, Staryu lowered its head, firing off a large ball of pulsating water towards Porygon. The Virtual Pokemon blinked and quickly levitated over the attack, Demitri calling back, "Retaliate with a Psybeam!"

Porygon rather hastily fired a blast of psychic energy forth, Staryu unable to avoid and getting impacted right on its core, skidding backwards to the other side of the platform. Misty blinked slightly, murmuring, "Such power, despite a fast attack like that...go with a Tackle!"

Staryu looked back up, hopping into the air and spinning about, shooting towards Porygon. Demitri and said Normal-type leaned back, the Trainer calling, "Knock it off balance, Psybeam!"

The robotic Pokemon shot several blasts towards Staryu, though it managed to swerve out of the way of every attack. Misty smirked slightly as Styaryu finally came within striking distance, Demitri shouting, "Sharpen, quick!"

Misty's smirk faded as Porygon's snout abruptly extended, forcing Staryu to very quickly swerve out of the way, though the sudden movement caused Staryu to dive into the water, Porygon glancing around over the surface warily, humming to itself. "I'd be careful if I were you," Misty called warningly, beginning to smile once more. "In the water, my Pokemon are unmatched!"

"I'm not gonna take that comment too literally..." Demitri uttered lowly, Porygon continuing to scan the water, unaware of a dark spot creeping up behind it. The teen's eyes shot open and he quickly shouted, "Behind you!"

Porygon whirled around just in time for Staryu to shoot up, Misty smirking and calling back, "Water Pulse!"

This time, it was Staryu's turn to fire off a hasty attack, the ball of water slamming into Porygon with a powerful splash and sending it flying back. Porygon skidded along the water before slamming against the side of one of the platforms, buzzing as it shook the excess water off of it. "Are you alright...?" Demitri called, Porygon giving a beep in confirmation before levitating back up. The teen nodded, commanding, "Then let's get a Conversion 2 up!"

Porygon's body began flashing in response, a faint light enshrouding it before halting, the Virtual Pokemon beeping to signify the attack had finished. Demitri narrowed his gaze somewhat expectantly as Misty pointed forth, shouting, "Give it a Tackle!"

Staryu once more began to spin about, flying swiftly towards Porygon. The Virtual Pokemon quickly floated into the air to avoid, forcing Staryu to shoot upwards to avoid smacking into the side of the platform. While it was still in midair, Demitri pointed upwards, shouting, "Psybeam!"

Porygon began firing off several blasts of psychic energy at Staryu, the Water-type deflecting all of them before beginning to drop down towards Porygon. The Normal-type looked up, Demitri shouting, "Meet it head-on with a Tackle!"

With this command, the Virtual Pokemon lunged upwards, its now pointed beak directed forward. Misty blinked and quickly yelled back, "Use Water Pulse!"

Staryu righted itself in midair, firing downwards a powerful pulsating blast of water. Porygon's eyes widened, though Demitri clenched both fists, commanding, "Plow right through it! I know you're capable!"

A determined expression found its way onto Porygon's face as it slammed directly into the blast of water, the orb exploding with a powerful spray as the Normal-type sliced its way through. Misty's eyes shot open as Porygon's bladed nose was smashed into Staryu's body, causing it to beep in a panic before they both began drifting downwards. Staryu finally splashed into the water while Porygon drifted away, the slightly cut up Star Shape Pokemon's core flashing faintly. "That was a close one..." Demitri murmured, sighing lightly as Porygon gave off a victorious beep.

"I see...that Conversion 2," Misty murmured, returning Staryu to its ball. "Otherwise, Porygon would've never been able to force its way through that attack..." She smiled slightly, murmuring with a slight nod, "Impressive."

"Thanks," Demitri murmured, his eyes trailing to Porygon. "...will you be able to make it against her next Pokemon...?"

The Virtual Pokemon nodded with a confident beep, Misty pulling forth another Poke Ball. "I'd be a tad more cautious if I were you..."

With this comment, Misty flung her next Poke Ball forth, quickly releasing the familiar Starmie to the field. Demitri furrowed his brow in thought, calling, "Psybeam."

Porygon obeyed, firing several blasts of psychic energy at Starmie. The Mysterious Pokemon was hit directly, skidding back a few inches, but not any further. Demitri bit his lower lip with a frown as Misty called, "Starmie is a dual Water AND Psychic-type...your Psybeam isn't going to be as useful in battle."

Demitri gave a small grunt, his Porygon blinking and levitating back slightly. "If we can't fight from long range, we'll simply do it at close range. Tackle!"

Porygon lunged forth, snout pointed forth and giving a slight gleam. Misty smiled slightly before motioning forth, calling, "Starmie, Rapid Spin!"

The Water-type leaped into the air, abruptly beginning to spin about before shooting towards Porygon. The Virtual Pokemon blinked in shock before attempting to dive out of the way, instead sent flying off to the side with a smash, toppling to a somewhat noisy halt on one of the platforms. Demitri's eyes widened slightly as Porygon floated back up, shaking itself off. "You alright...?"

Porygon gave a slight buzz and shook itself off, looking up as Starmie began flying forth for another attack, causing the Virtual Pokemon to narrow its gaze in anticipation. It lunged forth rather quickly, Demitri clenching his teeth together before calling, "Tackle, one more time!"

"Rapid Spin, let's take it out!" Misty shouted back, the two lunging towards each other once more. Both of them impacted each other with a resounding clashing noise, Porygon's bladed nose scratching at Starmie's core before it span about, propelling Porygon backwards. While the Mysterious Pokemon landed with a slight stagger on the platform, Porygon clattered to a halt in front of Demitri, its eyes now depicting an unconscious "x". "Looks like Porygon's out of it!"

Demitri fell silent, slowly slipping down to Porygon's side and scooping up with a worried expression. "Porygon...?"

The Virtual Pokemon slowly glanced back at Demitri with a faint beep, blinking groggily before collapsing once more, prompting the teen to return it to its Ball. "Damn it..." he uttered, looking up at Starmie. "...at least it's injured enough..."

"I wouldn't count on it," Misty responded with a smile. "Recover!"

The Water-type's core abruptly began glowing, a faint light encompassing its entire body. Demitri's eyes steadily widened as the scratch going along the core formed back together, Starmie giving off a slight beep and dispelling the light. "Now, what was that?" Misty asked, folding her arms slightly and smiling. Demitri fell silent, lowering his head slightly and closing his eyes with a faint sigh. "Let's see your second Pokemon then!"

Demitri slowly stood back up, his hand trailing into his pocket. "I've only got Aerodactyl and Abra left...do I take a chance...? Aerodactyl's going to be at a major disadvantage, but...Abra can't battle at all..."

Before the teen could make his decision, the formerly silent Abra perched on his shoulder gave a slight yelp, abruptly vanishing and landing on the platform across from Starmie. Demitri blinked and looked up with a shocked expression, murmuring, "Abra...?"

"Interesting choice," Misty remarked, folding her arms in curiosity and nodding. Said imp-like Pokemon gave off a noticeable tremble but retained a serious expression...or at least as serious as it could appear while seemingly sleeping. "Let's start this off with a Rapid Spin!"

Starmie abruptly leaped into the air, throwing its spinning body towards Abra once more. Before it could impact, the Psychic-type vanished amidst a small flash of light, reappearing on a different platform while Starmie began twirling back around, its side beginning to skid along the water as it turned back around. Misty furrowed her brow slightly as Starmie managed to right itself, its Trainer commanding, "Water Pulse, now!"

The Mysterious Pokemon quickly shot forth a large ball of pulsating water towards Abra, the Psi Pokemon looking up before vanishing once more. This time, it reappeared on Starmie's head, clinging to the top prong and causing it to look up with a beep. "Shake it off!" Misty shouted, Starmie quickly beginning to twirl about and fly into the air.

"Abra!" Demitri called, his eyes widening as the Psychic-type was finally thrown off, landing with a powerful splash in the water and causing the teen to grit his teeth together. The Psi Pokemon slowly began clambering out of the water with several coughs, Demitri looking down with a small wince. "This isn't good..."

Misty's smile faded into a serious expression, the girl looking up at Demitri slightly. "You ready to give in yet? I'll allow it."

Demitri bit his lower lip, watching as Starmie dove towards Abra once more. Instead of teleporting away, however, Abra attempted to leap out of the way, though Starmie's attack grazed against its side and caused it to yelp, toppling to the edge of the platform. The teen went to take a step forth, watching as, with a small squeak, Abra began staggering back to its feet, panting slightly and looking up at Starmie as it finally landed with a halt on the opposite end of the platform. "Well?"

The teen finally closed his eyes, bowing his head slightly and giving a slight sigh. "I..."

_"I'm not going to battle for YOUR reputation and honor if this is what's going to happen."_

Demitri's eyes widened slightly as the memory of his battle against Zack and its finish played through his head once more, the memory of the enraged Ranoku passing by his head. He slowly looked back up at Abra, who glanced at the teen ever so slightly; despite its closed eyes, Demitri couldn't help but feel a sense of determination coming from it, something he had felt before...his first battle against Zack. Another memory, this time of Porygon so defiantly going to face against the boy's Charmander, played through his head, as well as the victory and cheering crowd that had been spectating. Several moments passed by in silence, Misty's serious expression turning into worry. "...well...?"

"...I'm not done just yet," the teen finally uttered, looking up with a stoic expression. "I may not be winning this fight...my Pokemon may be getting thrashed about, but if they're not willing to back down, then neither am I."

Abra gave a very slight nod, Misty giving a very slight smile and nodding. "Bold words...let's see if you can back them up for much longer. Water Pulse!"

With this comment, Starmie rather quickly shot a pulsating orb of water forth, straight towards Abra. Instead of avoiding, the Psychic-type slowly held up both hands, giving a slight grunt as Demitri's eyes widened in anticipation. The attack finally landed with a large splash, scattering water all of the entire field and forcing Demitri to step back slightly. Amidst the splash of water, however, a bright light had began forming, reflecting off of all of the water droplets. "What..."

The water finally splattered to a halt, revealing the now brightly glowing Abra, a white light encompassing its entire body. Misty and Demitri's eyes both widened, the latter uttering, "Is he...evolving...?"


	28. Roadblock

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 28-Roadblock

**Battle Re-cap **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri **  
**Porygon (KOed by Starmie)**  
**Abra Kadabra**

**vs.**

**Gym Leader Misty **  
**Staryu (KOed by Porygon)**  
**Starmie**

Abra's glowing form began rather quickly shifting about, slowly expanding outwards into a new, taller form. It arms and legs became a bit thinner and wiry, its ears growing out longer and its snout elongating. Two drooping, hairy extensions also sprouted from the tip of its snout, an almost mustache-like appearance to them. Claws grew out of the evolving Psychic-types hands and feet, one of its claws abruptly gripping onto a steadily materializing object; a silver spoon. A large, poofy tail seemingly exploded from the Pokemon's rear, drooping out onto the ground as the light finally began fading. Abra's coloration remained, however, its eyes were now opened up and creased in a threatening glare, a red star emblazoned on its forehead and some red stripes running down its belly.

_Kadabra, the Psi Pokemon. The evolved form of Abra. It emits special alpha waves from its body that induce headaches just by being close by._

Demitri couldn't help but blink as Misty smiled slightly, folding her arms. "Two evolutions in a row...? Interesting development. Not that it'll change the outcome of this battle, you're still at a disadvantage."

"Am I now...?" the teen suddenly remarked, looking up and slowly shifting the glasses about on his face. "I'm not going to make the mistake of not knowing what a Pokemon is capable of again. Fortunately for me..."

With one swift movement, Demitri yanked out his Pokedex, flipping it open and glancing down at it slightly. "...the professor was kind enough to show me how to use the Pokedex to gather info on all of a Pokemon's abilities. Now I'll never be left guessing what my Pokemon is capable of."

Misty fell silent for a moment before smiling again, giving a low chuckle and closing her eyes. "...and? Simply knowing what your Pokemon can do won't help you from being outclassed." The Gym Leader proceeded to motion forth, shouting loudly, "Let's pick up where we left off! Starmie, Water Pulse!"

After standing by patiently, the Mysterious Pokemon abruptly shot forth a large orb of pulsating water, Kadabra looking up with a stoic expression and gripping the spoon on its grasp tighter. Demitri looked up from his Pokedex and motioned forth slightly, calling, "Kadabra, meet it head-long with a Confusion!"

The Psi Pokemon's eyes began glowing a bright blue, thrusting its claw forth and causing a distorted blast of air to smash into the incoming water attack, smashing it to bits and splattering it all over the water surface. Misty couldn't help but blink as Demitri smiled ever so slightly, lowering his hand and adding, "Kinesis."

Kadabra's eyes continued to glow, the Psychic-type lifting up its spoon and beginning to very slowly bend it over, Starmie giving off a faint buzz and staggering back slightly, its core giving off a few weak blinks. Misty blinked again and stepped forth slightly, calling, "Starmie! Are you alright?"

"Kadabra emit alpha waves from their brain that induces headaches," Demitri called, Misty glancing over at him slightly. "Kinesis, a technique exclusive to its evolutionary family, channels those waves to attack the opponent mentally and disorient them. It's not nearly as potent as other techniques that deliberately cause confusion, but it works."

Misty clenched her teeth together with a small frown, motioning forth and calling, "We're not done here just yet! Starmie, Rapid Spin!"

The Water-type obeyed, abruptly leaping into the air and spinning towards Kadabra; as a result of its earlier attack, however, it was flying noticeably lopsided. Misty bit her lip in frustration as Demitri blinked, lowering his Pokedex slightly. "...Confusion Kadabra, knock it off course."

Kadabra's eyes began glowing once more, an invisible force slamming into Starmie's side and causing it to spiral completely out of control, splashing into the water with considerable force. Kadabra lowered its hand and began looking around warily, Demitri narrowing his gaze and looking down at the pool warily. A few moments passed in silence before he noticed a shadow beginning to creep up from behind, the teen's eyes shooting open. "Behind you!"

The Psi Pokemon quickly twirled around, just in time to notice Starmie shoot out, still in a Rapid Spin motion. The entire field seemed to slow down as Kadabra leaned backwards underneath Starmie, its eyes flashing with another psychic glow that smashed its opponent high into the air, though Kadabra fell backwards onto its back from the change in gravity. Misty's eyes shot open, the girl shouting in alarm, "Starmie!"

"We're almost there!" Demitri called, sliding a foot forth slightly and staring at the still grounded Kadabra. "Hit it with a few more Confusions!"

Kadabra nodded in response, continuing its barrage of telekinetic assaults that knocked Starmie steadily higher into the air, several audible beeping noises being heard that steadily became a bit weaker, its blinking core beginning to glow weaker and weaker. Misty's eyes widened even further and she shouted, "Quick, Recover!"

"I don't think so," Demitri finished, pointing forth. "Kadabra, close the distance! Teleport!" Misty's eyes shot open as Kadabra vanished in a flash of light, hastily reappearing directly above the steadily glowing Starmie. "Now finish this!"

With one powerful thrust, Kadabra slammed another psychic blast down into Starmie's back, sending the Mysterious Pokemon plummeting downwards at an alarming speed. It finally smashed into the platform with considerable force, Kadabra slowly alighting onto the ground and glancing at its opponent. Starmie attempted to sit back up, its now cracked core giving off a few weak sputters before finally passing out, the gem's light fading out. "I...lost..."

Demitri's eyes steadily widened as Kadabra turned towards its Trainer, nodding in approval and causing the teen to murmur, "I won...I actually won."

Misty slowly returned Starmie to its Ball, meeting with Demitri at the edge of the pool while his Kadabra warped to his side. "That was pretty impressive, not that I'd expect anything less from a Douniiru."

A vein popped from Demitri's head as he looked down, uttering, "Of course not..."

"And so, it's with great pleasure that I award you with the Cascade Badge," Misty finished, placing the droplet-shaped badge into Demitri's palm. "Proof of your victory here today!"

The teen looked down at it slowly, clenching it and placing the badge in his pocket, eyes closed with a rather apathetic expression. "Thanks..."

A small pause followed, and Misty's smile slowly faded. "...what's wrong? Aren't you happy that you won?"

"Well, yeah, I am..." Demitri murmured, giving a sigh as Kadabra tilted its head to one side in worry. "...just that, given recent circumstances, I've been feeling down overall." He glanced up at the curious-faced Misty, and explained, "My mentor and I got into a huge fight and we split, so...I'm going to be taking the League challenge all by myself as opposed to in a group like we had originally planned."

"Oh...I see," Misty responded, sighing and closing her eyes with folded arms. "Arguments with friends are the worst, but I'm sure you two'll come around eventually."

Demitri glanced back at Misty with an unimpressed expression, as if unbelieving of her comment. To turn the attention away from the teen's now soured disposition, Misty rolled her eyes and continued, "Anyway...your next best bet would USUALLY be to go to Saffron City, however, the roads have been blocked off as of late."

The teen looked up with newly sparked interest, blinking in surprise. "Really...? Why's that?"

"Well..." Misty began, sighing and rubbing the back of her head. "From what I've heard from their Gym Leader, it's a matter of home security. I haven't gotten many more details, but the Pokemon League officials are taking care of it as much as they can."

Demitri sighed and slowly nodded, turning away and glancing at Kadabra. "If not Saffron, then where should I head next...?"

"I'd recommend Vermillion City," Misty responded, beginning to smile once more. "It's directly south of Saffron, but a few Trainers have dug a path that leads underground through Saffron to get there. It's a beautiful pier town, where many famous ships dock."

Demitri's memory was rather abruptly jarred, his eyes shooting open for a moment. "Famous ships..."

The teen slowly reached into his pocket, pulling out the S.S. Anne ticket Ranoku had given to him in thought. He looked the piece of paper over; it was set to sail tomorrow. A few moments passed in silence before the teen glanced back at Misty, murmuring, "Would I be able to make it to Vermillion City by tomorrow...?"

"Sure," she responded with a slight nod. "I've heard the famous cruise liner S.S. Anne is currently docked there, it's scheduled to shove off very soon."

"Exactly," Demitri finished, pocketing his ticket and beginning to walk off. "They'll probably be there as well."

Misty couldn't help but blink as Demitri waved a hand after her, beginning to walk off of the tank. "Thank you for your help, and the badge."

The girl slowly nodded back with a small smile, Demitri stepping next to Kadabra, who, in a split moment, warped the Trainer and Pokemon out.

**-Later-**

The sun had, by this point, lifted itself high into the sky, signs of the afternoon coming on quickly. Demitri now walked down a slope through an open dirt road, trees on either side of the path. Porygon floated on one side of the teen while Kadabra slowly walked along the other side, its tail occasionally swishing about. "...given Ranoku's short attention span, he's probably already finished business in the S.S. Anne and moved on. Not completely sure we'll be finding them there."

Porygon beeped in response and glanced at its Trainer, Demitri slowly looking back. "...perhaps a little part of me does want to make up with him. But given how stubborn he is, I can tell it's not going to happen. A miracle's all I can come up with to save whatever the hell it is we had."

The Virtual Pokemon gave off a small buzz and tilted its body to one side, Demitri closing his eyes with a small sigh. "I'm pretty sure I could handle myself in Kanto without Ranoku's help. After all, I've got you guys...and there has to be SOME truth to everyone blabbering about my heritage and being a natural-born Trainer."

At this time, a somewhat loud shriek was heard, Demitri glancing up and watching as Aerodactyl began flying over from above some trees, slamming down onto the ground in front of its Trainer and coughing up some feathers. Demitri, Porygon, and Kadabra watched the remnants of what they assumed to be the Fossil Pokemon's lunch drift to the ground in front of them, only to be blown away by a gust of wind. "...were you going to share any of that?"

Aerodactyl gave a somewhat weak roar in response, stepping back ever so slightly and folding its wings together. Demitri shrugged slightly, murmuring, "I'm kidding, I don't think I'd enjoy raw bird Pokemon anyway..."

Porygon buzzed once more and glanced at Demitri, Kadabra tilting its head to one side while the Trainer glanced at the three of them. "I'm sure Vermillion isn't THAT far off, we should be able to make it in enough time for lunch." The teen's gaze slowly trailed to Porygon, adding, "It's not like you eat anyway."

The Normal-type gave a steady beep and looked away with a slight roll of its eyes, Demitri turning back towards Aerodactyl. "Let's get moving. I'm pretty sure this underground path is going to be a little small for you to fit in, so..."

"You'd be correct." Demitri blinked and quickly whirled to the source of the voice, a figure slowly stepping out of the nearby trees. "Aerodactyl'd never fit in the path...well, at least without comfortable breathing room."

Demitri and his Pokemon all took a small step back; the figure appeared to be a young man, probably a little older than Ranoku, with long, dark green hair and a dark gray suit. "...and...you are...?"

The man chuckled lightly and shrugged, glancing up at Demitri slightly. "Cuzenu. I work for the Silph Corporation."

This was met with a surprised blink from Demitri, the teen glancing at Porygon slightly. "Silph Co...the world's leading producer of equipment for Trainers..." He blinked and continued to stare at Cuzenu, adding, "Their headquarters are in Saffron..."

"Which as you should know by now is in the middle of lockdown," Cuzenu explained, his smile fading. "So I'm helping out passing Trainers by giving them an alternate passage through the underground tunnel."

Demitri nodded slightly, Porygon beeping with a pleased expression. "Thanks. Saved us quite a bit of searching."

"No problem," the young man replied, smiling again and beginning to lead Demitri into the trees. The teen returned Aerodactyl to its Ball and followed, Cuzenu casting him a momentary glance. _"That Aerodactyl from Pewter City...didn't Ranoku have something to do with that...?"_


	29. The SS Anne

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 29-The S.S. Anne

It didn't take as long as Demitri was expecting to reach the end of the tunnel, slowly pushing the cellar-like doors to the sides and standing up with an audible stretch. "Urf...little cramped in there..."

Porygon levitated up after him, beeping to its master while Kadabra followed after. Demitri glanced between the two, then began fighting his way through the clump of trees they had emerged into. "It'd probably help if they didn't hide it through all this shrubbery..."

Finally, Demitri managed to force his way into an opening, Porygon and Kadabra following faithfully and prompting the trio to look up; they were back on the main road, right before another large pair of gates with a sign rading "Saffron City South Gate - Currently Off-Limits".

"Seems as though we made it..." Demitri murmured, brushing some of the hair from his face and causing Porygon to beep victoriously. Its Trainer turned back towards the main road, narrowing his gaze and adding, "We need to hurry up and get moving, the afternoon's coming on quick."

All three looked up; true to Demitri's comment, the sky was beginning to turn a rather rich shade of orange. Wasting no more time, the human began leading his group through the opened pathway, the forest quickly clearing up and leaving them in a plain-like region. Not too much longer and the obnoxious squawking of seagulls drew their attention. All three looked up at a nearby hill, quickly hopping up to the top and looking down. "There it is..."

A rather large city greeted their vision; it didn't seem too crowded, especially the further outwards it went. The very tip of the city met with the ocean, a beach and shipyard able to be seen. Demitri narrowed his gaze and began walking somewhat quickly down the hill, Porygon and Kadabra following quickly behind before they arrived at the gates; right as they did so, the salty scent of the sea became all the more obvious. Demitri took a moment to inhale, sighing and rubbing his eyes. "I remember my mom and dad taking me here when I was younger...either to go to the beach or some cruise."

Porygon beeped in curiosity and glanced at Demitri as they wandered through the town, the human glancing back at the Virtual Pokemon. "Ah, I remember most of the cruises, especially those on the Royal Unova. Went to go visit relatives, especially when it was their turn to host the family reunion."

As if a memory had been creeping up on him, Demitri gave a slight shiver and wince, sighing. "...hopefully I don't have to deal with THAT while I'm busy on this journey."

The Normal-type gave another small buzz, turning around as Demitri took his glasses down from his face, beginning to clean them via a handkerchief produced from his bag. "Yes, it was that bad. As if I didn't enjoy my heritage being shoved down my throat as much as it already is, those events didn't help at all."

Porygon and Kadabra both stopped, glancing after their Trainer while the former buzzed once more with an alert beep. The teen waved his hand around dismissively, murmuring, "I'll be fine, don't worry. Even if I have to put up with them, it's not as bad as some other things could be-"

Demitri was abruptly interrupted when his walking path was blocked by a metallic bang, the teen staggering backwards and blinking through squinted eyes. It was only now he bothered to put his glasses back on, noticing that he had walked right into a sign reading "Vermillion Pier". Porygon approached with a disapproving buzz and sweatdrop, Demitri closing his eyes with a small sigh. "...that was embarrassing. But remember that, I can't go without my glasses. Can't see a damned thing."

The Virtual Pokemon beeped in understanding while Kadabra tugged on Demitri's jacket, motioning with its spoon towards the largest boat in the docks. Said vessel also had the most people gathered around it, a crowd comprised almost entirely of genteel-looking types headed up the stairway inside. Demitri's gaze, however, went to the hull, where the words "S.S. Anne" were so prominently emblazoned.

The teen blinked, gently resting a hand on Kadabra's head and nodding. "Good job." The Psychic-type nodded in response as Demitri began leading them through the crowd, finally arriving at the fioot of the steps. A sailor stood by, arms folded and looking down at Demitri expectantly. The teen began fishing through his pocket and pulled out his ticket, handing it over to the Sailor who looked it over, running it through a nearby machine before handing it back to him with a nod. Demitri nodded back and began walking up the stairwell, stepping up the stairs to the ship and looking around. "...if Ranoku or Anne were here, they'd probably be making a scene...and since it doesn't look like there's too much going on here..."

Porygon buzzed once more and glanced at its Trainer, Demitri looking back. "...there may be a little part of me that wants to find them, if not just to rub in the fact that I'm actually following through with the League challenge after all."

Another small buzz from the Virtual Pokemon, Demitri shrugging in response and beginning to walk into the deck of the ship itself. "It may be a little selfish, but after what he made me...let alone YOU endure...?"

The Normal-type tilted its head to one side as the sound of quiet discussion and clattering dishes tore the trio's attention back to their surroundings. Demitri blinked slightly upon noticing their setting; a large ballroom-like area was stationed before them, a chandelier hanging over a more wide-open clearing where dancing was to take place a floor downwards. It wasn't a dance that was currently going on, however.

"Ember!"

Demitri blinked in surprise upon hearing the aforemention attack be fired, forcing him to step towards the edge of the railing overlooking the apparent battlefield. As he expected, two Trainers were currently duking it out; a suit-wearing man with an orange-furred dog currently firing off attacks at a familiar target; a tan-colored cat with a golden coin protruding from its head.

_Growlithe, the Puppy Pokemon. Very protective of its territory. It will bark and bite to repel intruders from its space._

Porygon and Kadabra approached as well, peering over the side of the railing as well to look down at the battle. The cat continued to dodge the flying projectiles with great proficiency, finally sliding to a halt in front of its Trainer; a familiar brown-haired girl in a rather frilly and fancy dress. She smirked confidently and pointed forward forcefully, shouting, "Give it a dose of Faint Attack, Meowth!"

Suddenly, the Meowth vanished, its opponent blinking and looking around in shock. "On your guard, Growlithe!" the older man called, narrowing his gaze. "A very sneaky attack..."

"Sneaky, but useful!" the girl shouted, clenching her outstretched fist. "Take it down!"

Right on cue, the Meowth reappeared behind the Growlithe, its eyes widening as its opponent slammed down onto its back, knocking it unconscious. The Normal-type leaped back and gave an elaborate bow, its Trainer pumping a fist into the air and cheering amidst the slow clapping of the spectating crowd. "And that's a wrap!"

She smirked once more and looked amongst the crowd, both around the ballroom and on the overseeing balcony; almost immediately, her gaze fell on Demitri, and her confident expression deteriorated. "...oh...crap."

Right as this momentary exchanged occurred, the girl snatched up her Meowth and began darting off through the crowd, Demitri narrowing his gaze. "Of course, go and avoid me the instant I show my face..."

With this comment, the teen began leading Porygon and Kadabra down the stairs and into the ballroom. He began to cross the floor through the crowd, murmuring lightly, "Excuse me...pardon, make way..."

Demitri finally arrived out of the crowd and glanced all around the open ballroom floor; the girl was nowhere to be seen. The teen frowned with a sigh and rubbed a hand through his hair, uttering, "Wonderful..." Porygon gave a slight buzz as it and Kadabra approached, glancing all around.

"Good day, young one!" Demitri blinked and slowly turned around, finding another older man in a rather fancy suit approaching. "It is rare for young people such as yourself to be privileged enough to come see such a magnificent craft, wouldn't you say?"

"I've, uh...been here a few times already," Demitri responded blankly, Porygon beeping and bouncing in midair slightly.

The man gave a slight nod, his gaze trailing to the two Pokemon at his sides. "You appear to be a Trainer, no? How would you say to a little battle in front of this crowd?"

Demitri slowly glanced around, staring at all of the spectators who had turned their attention back onto him. The teen slowly rubbed the back of his head, murmuring lightly, "Well...I suppose a battle or two wouldn't hurt."

**-Meanwhile-**

"Dang...it...persistent...dork..."

The girl finally dove into a nearby room, closing the door behind her with a hysterical pant, her Meowth standing by her side. "Whoa, whoa, what're you in a rush for?" came Ranoku's voice, the teen currently reclining in a chair nearby, an energy drink can in his hands. "You piss off some patrons?"

The girl, obviously Anne, turned back towards Ranoku with alarmed expression, and retorted, "No, you dolt...Demitri's followed us here!"

The comment caused Ranoku to momentarily gag on his drink, spewing the contents into his drink and causing the fizzy liquid to spew up in his face. The teen took the can from his mouth and began to grab at his face, groaning in a skewed tone, "Agh, it came out of my nose!"

"What do we do?" Anne shouted, beginning to approach Ranoku. "We can't let him start tailing us this entire time!"

"It's inevitable when you think about it," Ranoku responded, beginning to wipe his drink off of his face with a nearby napkin. "He's obviously not giving up on the League just yet...and since you're both on the Gym challenge, you'll be going down the same path."

Anne gave a groan and stomped up and down, whining in a rather annoyed voice, "Don't you have a plaaaaaaaaan?"

Ranoku finally managed to clear his face off and stood up, beginning to sip from his drink again. "The best thing we can do is put as much distance between him and us as possible. So we're going to have to cut our trip short and get you your third badge."

"But how're we supposed to get off this boat?" Anne asked, beginning to calm down a bit.

The teen hummed and began rubbing his chin in thought, murmuring, "Well...we could try the deck, but people might think it's weird for me to take off on Salamence in the middle of the deck..."

Anne paused for a moment to stare at Ranoku incredulouosly, even Meowth giving a disbelieving purr. "...you're worried about people thinking you're weird...?"

"Yeah. Am I?" Ranoku asked blankly, turning to Anne, who almost fell over in pure exasperation.

"No, you're as NORMAL as can be!" she retorted with as thick a layer as sarcasm as she could manage. Unfortunately for her, it went lost on Ranoku, who turned around nonchalantly and waved his hand about.

"Alright then, case closed. So the deck's a no-go...maybe we can wait until he leaves the ballroom to make our move."

Anne managed to steady herself long enough to glance back at Ranoku, who turned to face her while depositting his now empty drink into the trash can. "We'll split up along the ground floor. Ought to keep him preoccupied long enough for us to get away."

"Alright...sounds like a plan," Anne remarked, turning towards the door and opening it to peer around the corridor.

"Wait a moment," Ranoku suddenly remarked, Anne turning around to face him once more. "...why are we avoiding Demitri again?" Anne didn't respond to this, only giving a muffled groan before leading the older teen out of the room.

**-Meanwhile-**

A rather powerful blast was heard, and Porygon's opponent, a blue spiny rabbit-like creature, was sent toppling backwards, now unconscious. Clapping went up from among the crowd as Demitri glanced all around, the Trainer and his Porygon giving an elaborate bow as their opponent as returned to their Ball. "Well done, well done!" the older man remarked, stowing his Poke Ball in his suit. "It has truly been a while since I've seen a younger Trainer with such skill!"

"Thanks..." Demitri murmured, rubbing the back of his head. "Say, ah...I'm looking for two people. A little girl with shoulder-length brown hair, probably showing off in an obnoxious manner and horribly overdressed? And a teenage boy with long black hair, purple highlights, probably drinking an energy drink and acting like a brain-dead stooge?"

The man gave a slight blink from Demitri's crass description before looking up in thought. "Well...I'm fairly sure the little girl was here earlier, battling against another patron, but she left rather abruptly for seemingly no reason. And then you came."

"So they are avoiding me..." Demitri murmured with a sigh, Porygon giving a slight buzz and turning to its Trainer. He glanced back at the older man, and then asked. "Can you tell me where she went?"

A few moments passed while the man thought to himself, humming before responding. "I believe she went towards the west wing."

"Thank you," Demitri responded, beginning to lead his Porygon and Kadabra through the crowd while, on the upper floor, Ranoku and Anne emerged through the crowd, looking around the ballroom.

"You see him?" Ranoku asked, Anne squinting to get a better look before shaking her head. "Alright, let's make a break for it."

Both nodded and dove for the exit; quite literally, and as a result they ended up toppling down the stairs, forcing those currently making their way up the stairs to quickly evade in shock and causing the sailor at the foot of the stairs to turn to them with a worried expression. "Are you alright?"

"Been better, but overall yeah," Ranoku responded, beginning to brush some dust off of him.

Anne quickly stood up, beginning to brush herself off frantically and gently setting her hands on her now dishevelled hair. "Agh! That fall screwed up my hair!"

"Forget it, it's not like we're going back on anyway," Ranoku replied blankly, standing up and stretching. "Come on, we need to get your badge as soon as possible. The S.S. Anne'll be shoving off soon."

Anne gave a slight nod and began following Ranoku away from the pier; back inside of the boat, Demitri and his two Pokemon were going through some hallways, checking through doors before finally arriving at one that was halfway open. He gave a small blink and began to enter, looking all around. He gave a sniff and furrowed his brow, murmuring, "Smells like fizz..."

The trio split up throughout the room, Demitri approaching the now slightly stained chair and setting his hand on the fabric. "Sticky like fizz..." The teen was interrupted when Kadabra gave a small grunt, forcing the others to glance back at him as he levitated something out of the trash bin; Ranoku's discarded can. Demitri narrowed his gaze and snatched up the container, shaking it about to hear the little bit still left inside. "No doubt about it, Ranoku was here. They must've made a break for it already..."

Porygon buzzed slightly, prompting Demitri to turn back to the door and step towards it. "Let's get moving, our best bet now is to head to the Gym and-"

The teen was interrupted when he opened the door, only to now find himself staring at a rather familiar, blonde-haired boy on the other end. A few rather awkward moments passed in silence before they leaped away, Demitri grunting, "Zack? What the hell are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing!" the boy retorted angrily, gritting his teeth together.

Porygon and Kadabra both gave off an intimidating growl, narrowing their gazes as Demitri folded his arms, returning to his usual stoic stance. "If you must know, I have a ticket. How did you get on, sneak aboard?"

Zack scowled back, folding his arms with a superior tone. "Very funny. You know they only invite the most refined people or, in my case, the best Trainers."

Demitri rolled his eyes with a small sigh, turning to the side and murmuring, "I highly doubt you were explicitly invited."

Before Zack could offer a response, the sound of feet pumping on the floor from the hallway was heard. "Zack! There you are!" Demitri glanced out of the side of his eye as Hayden approached, panting and hanging his head in exhaustion. "I didn't want to lose you here...that and miss Ilohe was worried you'd snuck off after she let us have those tickets..."

A vein visibly popped form Zack's head as he glanced at Demitri, who now had a rather smug expression etched on his face. "WHY DO YOU HAVE TO RUIN EVERYTHING?" Zack shouted, grabbing Hayden and beginning to jerk him about angrily.

With this comment, Demitri began leading his Pokemon out of the room, pushing Zack and Hayden aside. "Sorry, but I don't have time to put up with you at the moment, I have business to attend to."

Zack and Hayden both blinked, turning towards Demitri with a curious expression. "What kind of business...?" the older boy remarked, furrowing his brow.

Hayden began tugging on Zack's sleeve at this, trying to lead him away and murmuring, "Zack, we should get back with Ilohe, she'll start thinking we ditched her..."

"In a minute," Zack responded, turning to face Demitri with a sly grin. "I feel like last time we fought, I didn't get a good enough victory, what with you forfeiting. And I'm sure you've at least gotten SOME training done..."

Porygon and Kadabra cast each other a slight glance, Demitri turning to face Zack with a stoic expression. "You...want a rematch."

Zack rather dramatically pointed a finger at Demitri, shouting, "In front of the entire S.S. Anne! Ten minutes! Come to the ballroom, unless you're chicken that is."

Hayden emphasized the point by squawking a few times before the duo walked off, Demitri staring after them with an irritated expression. "Damn pain in the asses..."


	30. Rematch Aboard the SS Anne

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 30-Rematch Aboard the S.S. Anne

After splitting from Demitri, Zack and Hayden began to wander the corridors of the S.S. Anne, glancing all around warily. "Where did Ilohe even go...?" the former grunted slightly, scratching the back of his head in thought.

"I told ya she wouldn't like us wandering off like that," Hayden mumbled, giving a small sigh. "She's probably gonna pop up when we least expect it all mad an' stuff."

Zack waved a hand about dismissively. "Ah, you worry too much. She'll be just fine, and I'm sure she'll understand when I tell her we got a battle with Demitri planned out!"

Hayden only stared at Zack a bit warily and sighed, hanging his head until the duo reached the end of a hall, with a partially opened door with the nameplate "Captain's Quarters" emblazoned on it. Hayden glanced up at the door and murmured, "The captain's in this room..."

"Maybe we'll be able to find out where Ilohe is from here, speaking over the intercom and stuff," Zack explained, folding his arms and glancing at Hayden. "Go ask."

The boy blinked in shock. "What? Why do I gotta?"

"Because you never do anything," Zack replied plainly, folding his arms. "Now you can make yourself useful."

Hayden simply stared back with a blank expression before sighing and peeking into the door. "Excuse..."

The boy trailed off, Zack staring after him as several moments passed by in silence. After waiting a bit longer, the older boy began to lean in as well, grumbling, "What's taking so long, you-"

Inside of the room, the captain - a rather elderly man with a long, graying mustache and an unusually green-hued face - was hunched over a trash bin in his seat, his jacket off to reveal his entire upper torso. Standing over him from behind was Ilohe, who was currently working her lotion-covered hands into his back with a stoic expression, seemingly massaging into the wrinkled skin thoroughly. "Oohh, that's much better..." the captain mumbled lowly, a relieved expression going by his face. "Thank you Ms. Dysos, I'm feeling much better now..."

Ilohe leaned away from the captain as he began to pull his jacket back on, the teenager approaching a sink and beginning to wash her hands off. "Whatever," she replied blankly, the captain pushing himself towards the desk nearby. "Just aiming to get this boat moving again, the people out there would be preeeeeeetty pissed if they ended up behind schedule just because the captain was a little seasick."

"That they would be," the captain replied with a nod, Ilohe beginning to dry her hands off. "Ah well, thank you again for your help."

"Don't mention it," she replied, beginning to walk out of the door. She closed the door behind her after exitting the room and looked around, only to blink upon noticing Zack and Hayden nearby, the former hunched over a nearby bin as well while Hayden slumped against a wall, staring up at the ceiling with wide-eyes. "The hell are you two doing?"

Zack slowly glanced up from the bin with an annoyed expression, mumbling, "I'm going to need some heavy-duty brain bleach once we're off this ship..." Ilohe simply stared back with a small blink before Zack turned to face her completely. "What were YOU doing in there?"

The teenager blinked before frowning. "The ship's captain was suffering some seasickness, so I was helping him. Otherwise the departure of the S.S. Anne would've been COMPLETELY thrown off."

"Oh," Zack mumbled rather blankly, his annoyed expression dissipating as Ilohe approached, adopting a soured expression.

"And where have YOU two been anyway?" she asked rather harshly, setting her hands on her hips rather authoritavely. "Didn't I say not to wander off?"

Before Zack could offer a response, Hayden slowly glanced at him. "...hey, how does rubbing lotion into someone's back help with seasickness...?"

"Beats me," the boy responded blankly, shrugging before glancing at Ilohe. "Hey, how does rubbing-"

"ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION!" she barked loudly, causing Zack to shrink back into the wall slightly. "Now, before I beat it out of you!"

Zack gave a small groan and lifted his hands up defensively, mumbling, "Geez, don't have a cow...turns out Demitri was on board the ship." Ilohe's angered expression began to deteriorate. "So I challenged him to a rematch."

"You...Demitri..." Ilohe trailed off, slowly leaning back up and staring at the ceiling. "...getting another win would only prove moreso that I'm a better teacher than Ranoku..." A wide, sinister grin began to form on the girl's face and she chuckled faintly. "...I like the sound of that...maybe they'll actually listen to me then..."

Zack and Hayden exchanged a blank expression before Ilohe glanced back at them. "I'm actually impressed, and will no longer punish you for wandering off like I was originally going to. Where is Demitri?"

"We're gonna battle in five minutes in the parlor of the S.S. Anne," Zack explained, causing Ilohe's smirk to widen and for her to clasp her hands together.

"Oh, we're going to humiliate him in front of the ENTIRE ship? I like the way you think," she responded with a somewhat evil-sounding giddiness. "Looks like I'm not wasting my time training you after all!"

Zack and Hayden exchanged yet another somewhat exasperated expression as Ilohe began leading them away. "Come on. Just because you won last time doesn't mean Demitri isn't going to have gotten better, so you need to be prepared..."

**-Meanwhile-**

Ranoku currently sat in the lobby of the Pokemon Center, which was almost completely empty due to the festivities on the S.S. Anne. He took a small sip of the can he currently held, but was interrupted when the door to the bedrooms opened up and Anne staggered out, seemingly still in the process of pulling her dress on. "Come on come on come ooooooon!" she called energetically, finally getting her now unkempt hair around it and trying to pull Ranoku off of the bench.

"Hey, hey, calm down, the Gym isn't going anywhere," the teen replied rather calmly, standing up as Anne began to dart towards the door. "Why are you in such a hurry all of a sudden?"

"The more time spent sitting here not getting my badge is time spent that Demitri will catch up to us!" she retorted, whirling around to him with an alarmed expression. "So we have to get moving NOW!"

With this comment, the girl rushed towards the door and slid it open; directly on the other side, however, Ranoku was standing with his arms folded and a stoic expression. Anne shrieked in surprise and fell backwards, the teen murmuring, "Don't you think you're overreacting?"

"Wh-...b-...ho-...y-...w-..." Anne sputtered in shock, whirling around to where Ranoku was mere seconds ago, which was now empty. She glanced back at him in amazement and managed to squeak, "How the hell did you do that?"

"Anne, language," Ranoku responded rather authoritavely, causing the girl to sigh and stand back up.

"Sorry..." she mumbled, shaking her head. "And I do not think I'm overreacting! I just don't want to get involved with that Demitri weirdo again!"

Ranoku shook his head slightly. "Well neither do I, but there is such a thing as moderation. You act like every second we spend in the same city as him is killing you."

"M-maybe a little on the inside, but that's not the point!" Anne retorted, looking away with a frown. "I just don't like him, okay? He's such a...a...a dork, a talentless noob!"

Ranoku gave a small shrug. "Well hey, you used to be a..." The teen trailed off before turning towards Anne in curiosity. "...noob?"

Anne glanced back at him slightly. "Yeah. You know, someone who's new to something and knows practically nothing about it...you KNOW what I mean!"

"I know, I know," Ranoku replied, sighing and giving another nonchalant shrug. "It's just that the context you used it in was weird..."

The little girl's expression turned into exasperation. "...this is a fanfiction based off of a video game, and you're worried about the term 'noob' being used out of context?"

"...touche."

"Back on subject," Anne mumbled flatly, shaking her head. "You yourself said you didn't want him around anymore, so if he's following us then we should work to stay away from him as much as possible! He might start pestering us into making us train him again!"

Ranoku gave a small shrug before glancing back at Anne. "Now that's a little ridiculous. He can't MAKE us do anything, you said it yourself, he's just a...'noob'."

Anne glanced away from Ranoku once more, frowning. "Hmph...well...I still don't want him to be around, he just...he's not good enough to receive your tutilage!"

The teen gave a surprised blink, his eyes widening slightly as if suddenly realizing something. "...you're jealous."

"Excuse me?" Anne retorted rather loudly, turning back towards Ranoku with an infuriated gaze. "I am NOT! How could I be?"

Ranoku slowly folded his arms with a stoic gaze, and explained, "When we first met him, I mentioned he had a huge amount of potential. You're jealous that I never said something similar to you."

The little girl simply fumed back at him, quivering in anger before looking away and gnashing her teeth together. Finally, her expression began to fall slightly, Ranoku staring down at her with a serious, seemingly piercing expression. "...alright, FINE, maybe I am a little jealous because you said THAT, but no other reason! Big whoop..."

"Sounds like that's what you're making it out to be right now," Ranoku replied bluntly, Anne glancing back at him with a frown.

"Look, can we just PLEASE go to the Gym?" she asked in an almost desperate tone now. "They'll be closing in a little bit!"

Ranoku's serious expression turned into surprise. "...wow, really? See, why didn't you give me THAT reasoning instead of letting your jealousy get us into this whole argument?"

The little girl opened her mouth to retort, only for the realization of Ranoku's logic to set in. One of her eyes twitched and she gave a light squeak and grunt, her fingers clenching in annoyance. Ranoku sighed lightly and began to lead her out of the Center, mumbling, "Calm down, we'll go get your Badge..."

**-Meanwhile-**

Yet another battle completed itself in the ballroom, the spectators applauding the two combatants as they returned their Pokemon. The two battlers then met in the middle and shook hands with a nod, beckoning to the crowd. "MAKE WAY, MOVE IT OR LOSE IT!"

Everyone glanced in surprise towards the source of the voice, watching as Ilohe forced her way through the crowd, now leading Zack and Hayden to the battlefield. The two combatants backed away as Ilohe called out, "We're going to need the floor, we've got a score to settle here!"

The spectators all glanced at each other slightly, Zack clearing his throat. "...you probably could've done that less...I dunno, rudely."

Ilohe glanced at Zack and folded her arms with a frown. "Do you want to battle Demitri, or not?"

"Well yeah, but-"

Zack's sentence was interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice clearing their throat. A smirk formed onto Ilohe's face as she turned around; the crowd began to part, revealing Demitri stepping forward, a serious expression on his face with his Porygon and Kadabra at his sides. "Well well, look who decided to show..."

"I honestly have better things to do than put up with you three," Demitri uttered flatly, sighing while he took his spot on the field across from Zack. "But I'm not going to be made a coward. Besides..." The teen narrowed his gaze. "I AM going to get payback for what happened at the cape."

As if doubling their Trainers' sentiments, Porygon gave off a frantic, challenging beep, its gaze narrowed. Kadabra itself also gave off a small grunt and gripped its spoon a little tighter, Ilohe smirking slightly. "Heh, so your Pokemon want just as much revenge as you do for what happened, do they? Then how about we make this interesting?"

Demitri and Zack slowly glanced at Ilohe with a contemplative expression. "Interesting how...?" the former mumbled waily.

"A double battle," Ilohe replied, folding her arms and glancing at Zack. "See if you've got the SKILL to command two Pokemon as opposed to just one."

The younger boy began to smirk as well, nodding and turning towards Demitri. "I like the sound of that. Double the humiliation...you up for it?"

Demitri's gaze went to Porygon and Kadabra, both of whom glanced at him with a nod. "...alright, I suppose we could try that," the teen mumbled with a small sigh.

"Good," Ilohe remarked with a chuckle, glancing over at the curious spectators. "Now the both of you had better give these people a show!"

"Don't worry, I will!" Zack called out, pulling forth two Poke Balls and toissing them forth. Both erupted in a pillar of light before releasing two Pokemon to the field; Pidgeotto and Charmeleon. Upon glancing at the Fire-type, Demitri furrowed his brow while it gave a small huff, exhaling a small wave of smoke from its nostrils while narrowing its gaze dangerously.

"Alright...that thing looks just as vicious as before," the teen murmured lightly, glancing at Porygon and Kadabra. "But we've gotten stronger since last time. The both of you up to it?"

Both Pokemon nodded as Zack's grin widened. "Hmph...you don't think we've improved since last time? Nothing has changed, you're still going to lose!"


	31. Offer

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 31-Offer

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Pkmn Trainer Zack **  
**Location: S.S. Anne **  
**Double Battle**

"Charmeleon, start us off with an Ember!"

The Flame Pokemon obeyed, firing off a large spray of flaming darts towards Porygon and Kadabra. The former levitated into the air while its Psychic-type partner hopped backwards, generating a Confusion to block the incoming attack. Demitri glanced up at the now airborne Porygon and called, "Psybeam!"

Porygon obeyed, firing off a blast of rainbow-colored energy towards Charmeleon. The Fire-type stepped to the side to avoid the attack, Zack frowning. "Hmph, don't take that! Pidgeotto, Quick Attack!"

Screeching, the bird Pokemon dove towards Porygon at an intense speed, the Normal-type glancing at it just in time to be smashed, knocking it to the side and descending slightly towards Kadabra and Charmeleon. The Psi Pokemon glanced up at Porygon slightly while its airborne opponent circled around ominously, screeching all the while. Zack gave another small smirk, shouting, "Dive at 'em! Charmeleon, prepare a Dragon Rage!"

Charmeleon obeyed, several bluish-colored flames beginning to form in its mouth. Demitri furrowed his brow and glanced up at the charging Pidgeotto before sighing. "...Porygon, turn your attention to Charmeleon, Psybeam it. Kadabra, Kinesis on Pidgeotto."

Both obeyed, Porygon floating in front of Kadabra and firing off a blast of psychic energy towards it. Kadabra, on the other hand, glanced up at Pidgeotto and lifted up one of its hands. Its eyes began glowing a rather bright blue color and one of its fingers began gently bending down on the spoon, causing the air around it to become hazy. Pidgeotto's own eyes shot open, its pupils dilating and its body beginning to swerve. "Fire!"

Charmeleon fired off the wave of blue flames at Porygon's attack right as it came within range, generating a large explosion and shrouding the field in smoke, causing the participants to cough slightly and look away. Zack remained grinning widely while Demitri remained stoic, staring through the smoke keenly. "Porygon, Kadabra. You okay in there?"

Both looked around warily, staying close together and narrowing their gazes. As they did so, however, they noticed a faint orange glow in the smoke; undoubtedly coming from the flame on Charmeleon's tail. Before they could fire an attack, several embers came flying from the smoke and slammed into both their bodies, knocking them back slightly and causing Porygon to buzz in irritation. Demitri narrowed his gaze and called, "Back out of there!"

The two Pokemon leaped backwards out of the cloud, stepping in front of their Trainer while Zack frowned in irritation. "Cowards!" he called out, the smoke beginning to slowly clear and enable the battlers a better view of each other.

"Cowardice is giving into fear and backing out of a fight with your tail between your legs," Demitri replied smartly, shifting about the glasses on his face. "What I'm doing is different; a tactical repositioning."

Zack and Hayden simply stared back at him with a dumbstruck expression, blinking in confusion. "...a what?"

"Never mind," Demitri sighed, hanging his head and motioning forth. "Kadabra, Kinesis!"

The Psi Pokemon thrust its spoon forth, rebending it once more and causing its eyes to glow bright blue. Charmeleon's eyes shot open and its pupils dilated in a manner similar to the now clumsily hovering Pidgeotto. Zack looked up at the bird with a frown, grunting, "That attack again...?"

The boy glanced down at Charmeleon, who was now staggering slightly and holding its head in one claw, growling lightly and blinking in irritation. "Hey! What gives?" Zack shouted in confusion.

"Kadabra gives off special alpha brain waves," Demitri explained, closing his eyes and sliding a hand into his jacket pocket. "They are capable of inducing headaches to those nearby. Kinesis focuses these brain waves into a condensed blast that disoriented the target, leaving them unable to focus correctly."

Zack gave off an irate growl, watching as Pidgeotto slowly landed on its feet, staggering about slightly while Charmeleon grunted steadily louder, some bluish-colored flames leaking from its mouth. "Tch...so you've got some special techniques to confuse us, that's not going to be enough to win! You're not strong enough!" He motioned forward a bit towards Demitri and his Pokemon, calling, "Dragon Rage! Blow them to bits!"

The flames in Charmeleon's mouth visibly intensified, an obvious sign of a large attack preparing to be fired. Demitri narrowed his gaze and glanced at Porygon and Kadabra, both of which glanced at him. "Porygon, prepare a Psybeam. If I'm correct about what will happen..."

The Virtual Pokemon nodded as the tip of its beak began glowing in a large variety of rainbow colors, accompanied by an audible beeping and humming noise. Demitri glanced at Kadabra, who faced Charmeleon with a serious expression. "Disable."

Kadabra's eyes immediately began glowing a bright yellow, the action causing Ilohe to immediately blink and glance at Zack. "Do something you moron!"

Zack cast her an annoyed glare and turned to Demitri, shouting, "Pidgeotto, Quick Attack!"

The bird Pokemon immediately shot forward at an intense speed, giving off a loud squawking noise while Demitri narrowed his gaze. "Keep your lock on Charmeleon..."

Both of his Pokemon nodded and trained their gaze on the Fire-type, whose own widened eyes had began to glow a faint yellow. Zack gnashed his teeth together in anticipation as Pidgeotto flew within striking distance...only to immediately fly right over Kadabra's head and shoot past Demitri's head, forcing the spectating crowd to move out of the way to clear a path. "What?"

Unable to stop, Pidgeotto continued to shoot forward, promptly crashing into a nearby snack table and sending the contents flying off, a punch bowl slamming onto the bird's head as it toppled to a halt, now completely unconscious. "No!" Zack shouted in shock, his fists clenching in anger.

As this occurred, Charmeleon's eyes became completely yellow, its entire body tensing up and causing the still charging Dragon Rage to stop up, flames leaking out of it amidst a light choking noise. Zack glanced back at Charmeleon in confuhsion; to answer the question on the tip of the boy's tongue, Demitri spoke. "Disable prevents the usage of the last attack you used. But since you decided to plow ahead with brute force and charge up Dragon Rage, I was able to block off that attack right as you were going to use it."

A smirk slowly formed on Demitri's mouth and he tilted his head down slightly, staring at Zack over his glasses. "Remember what happened when Psybeam and Dragon Rage impacted earlier? You're about to see that at point-blank range." Zack's eyes shot open in shock as the teen pushed his glasses back on his nose, and finished, "Porygon, Psybeam."

The charged up beam of psychic energy streaked forth, slamming into Charmeleon's face and causing the built up flames to explode, engulfing Charmeleon in smoke and causing it to give off a strangled shout. Zack and Hayden gave off a shocked gasp while Ilohe remained stoic, her fingers beginning to angrily dig into the skin of her folded arms. Amidst the smoke, the now unconscious Charmeleon fell backwards onto its back, smoke leaking from its mouth with a raspy groan. "And that's a wrap. I win," Demitri finished, giving a nod to Zack.

The spectators began to clap rather energetically, Demitri glancing all around at them and prompting him and his two Pokemon to begin bowing a bit elogantly. Zack returned Charmeleon and Pidgeotto to their Balls, giving a light pant as Hayden apporoached. "Um...Zack...are you o-"

The boy cut him off by beginning to step towards Demitri; the teen glanced at him and turned to face Zack with a stoic expression, but before his rival could say anything, Ilohe approached as well and cut them both off. "Well NOW I'm finally seeing what Ranoku saw in you in the first place."

"Excuse me?" Demitri and Zack both remarked in unison, glancing at Ilohe with visibly surprised expressions.

Ilohe adopted her typical sickly sweet smile and nodded, arms still folded. "Yup. I didn't see it at first, but now it's as plain as day..."

Demitri furrowed his brow with an unimpressed expression. "Don't try and butter me up. What do you want?"

"What? I can't be impressed that you beat my protege?" Ilohe responded with an unusually passive tone, giving a nonchalant shrug that caused Zack and Hayden to glance at each other. "I'll get right to the point. Those tactics were ones I've never seen Ranoku incorporate before, so I can't help but assume they were of your own design."

"And if they are?" Demitri asked lowly, furrowing his brow.

Ilohe gave off another nonchalant shrug, seemingly attempting to pretend she didn't know where she was taking the conversation. "It struck me as a little...odd, is all. You're his student after all, I'd expect you to use techniques he taught you. Is it because he's not here that you decided not to rely on his ineffective tactics?"

Demitri furrowed his brow slightly, Ilohe glancing at Demitri with a wide grin. "After all, that has to be the reason you won this time. Instead of using Ranoku's training methods you used some of your own because you KNOW his don't work."

"You're insinuating that I think Ranoku's a bad teacher," Demitri mumbled flatly, Ilohe giving off another overly dramatic, fake shrug.

"I'm just calling them like I see them," Ilohe murmured gently. "After all, he's not here, you didn't use his techniques, you got better results, so-"

"Ranoku and I split up," Demitri remarked rather abruptly, causing Ilohe, Zack, and Hayden to all blink in surprise.

"...I beg your pardon?" she mumbled flatly.

Demitri turned away with a serious expression, Porygon and Kadabra glancing at each other. "After I lost to Zack in Cerulean City, he dropped me as his student. We've gone our separate ways, and I'm working throuogh Kanto by myself."

A few awkward moments passed in silence, Zack and Hayden exchanging a curious glance. Ilohe, on the other hand, broke out into an even wider, much less conspicuous grin. "Is that right...?"

Demitri nodded and looked up into the upper floors. "Yeah. I noticed them on board and prepared to go off and find them, but now they're avoiding me; after the time wasted by that whole affair I'd be surprised if they're still on the ship at all." With this comment, the teen prepared to walk off, mumbling, "Now if you'll excuse me, I should head to the Pokemon Center and prepare for training to face off with the Gym Leader in to-"

"Whoa whoa whoa, waaaaiiiit a minute there," Ilohe rather abruptly said, grasping a hold of Demitri's shoulder and spinning him around to face her. The teenage girl's smile was still unabashedly sinister and prominent. "So you're technically a free agent now?"

Porygon and Kadabra both narrowed their gaze, Demitri giving a rather bored blink. "I don't like the way you're calling me that."

"Lemme put it this way," Ilohe said, turning to the side and folding her arms slyly. "You used Ranoku's tactics versus mine, and you lost. You used your own tactics against mine, and won."

"Get to the point," Demitri said rather impatiently, pushing Ilohe's hand off of him. "The more time you spend yammering on is time that I could spend getting ready for my Gym battle."

Ilohe's smile flickered slightly, but remained prominent nonetheless. "Become my pupil. With my teachings and your natural skill, you'll be greater than you ever would have been sticking around with Ranoku and his bratty student or by yourself."

Zack immediately frowned and forced his way between the duo. "Hey!" he shouted, whirling to Ilohe. "What about me?"

"Don't get your panties in a knot, this doesn't affect you in any way," she mumbled flatly, waving her hand about dismissively while glancing at Demitri, giving a wide grin. "What do you say? With my help you'll become strong enough to even defeat those two jackasses yourself, getting revenge for how they dumped you like yesterday's trash."

Demitri stared back at Ilohe with a stoic expression, glancing at Porygon and Kadabra slightly. Both stared at him a bit nervously, finally prompting Demitri to sigh and look down. "I'll think about it."

Ilohe's smile faded a bit more, but she nodded regardless. "Alright. I'll expect your answer by tonight. Don't try skipping out on me either, or my offer won't be valid for much longer."

"Fine," Demitri mumbled, finally beginning to walk off. His two Pokemon glanced back at the sly-faced Ilohe, who chuckled faintly before they walked off.

**-Meanwhile-**

The sky was becoming darker and darker, the blue tint of night beginning to overtake the sky and forcing the orange glow of the sun over the horizon, causing the water in the bay of Vermillion to shimmer and sparkle. Near the bay sat a large hangar-like building adorned with lightning bolts, a sign reading "Vermillion City Gym" emblazoned near the front. Ranoku and Anne currently stood before it with a serious expression, glancing at each other. "Think it's still open?" Anne asked curiously.

"Only one way to find out," Ranoku replied, pushing the doors open; a receptionist passed by at exactly this moment, glancing at the duo. "Hey, is the Gym closed yet? Looking for a challenge."

The receptionist shifted the glasses about on her face before nodding. "I suppose the Gym Leader has time for one more match. Follow me."

The girl led the duo through the front pair of double doors, leading them into a large room with a dirt flooring, several light fixtures hanging above. Ranoku and Anne looked all around as the receptionist called out, "Lieutenant, we have one more challenger!"

A gruff chuckling came out from the other side of the room, followed by a figure slowly stepping out. A fairly tall and well-built man with short, spiked, blonde hair and a pair of sunglasses resting on his face came into view. He wore a light green muscle shirt, brown camouflage jeans, and a pair of combat boots, military dogtags hanging from around his neck. He pulled off his sunglasses and smirked slightly, murmuring, "Hah...I was hoping for one last challenge. Who's my opponent?"

Anne promptly stood forth at this, resting her hands on her hips with a defiant expression. The man glanced down at the girl and abruptly laughed hysterically, shouting out, "You? Aren't you a bit...tiny?"

This immediately incited a response from Anne, who clenched her fists with a fuming expression. "Hey! Just because I'm little does NOT make me weak!"

The Leader gave off another loud laugh, tilting his head back and sliding his sunglasses on the neck of his shirt. "I suppose you're right. I'll have to make that judgement based off of your Pokemon!" Anne fumed once more with a growl, her opponent resting their hands on his hips. "What's your name, soldier?"

"Anne!" she shot back harshly, causing the man to laugh energetically once more.

"Well don't you have spirit! I like that!" He jerked a thumb towards himself, calling out, "I am Lieutenant Surge, Leader of the Vermillion Gym! I'll have to warn you that I am an expert on Electric Pokemon! They saved me during the war, zapping my enemies into submission; the same as I'll do to you!"

Anne narrowed her gaze as both participants took their sides of the field, puling forth a Poke Ball. "We'll see about that!" Anne snapped back challengingly.


	32. Reconciliation

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 32-Reconciliation

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Anne vs. Gym Leader Surge **  
**Location: Vermillion Gym**  
**Single Battle**

Surge was the first to release his Pokemon, tossing a Ball forth and promptly causing another orb-shaped Pokemon to burst forth. It had a vaguely familiar color scheme, with a red upper body and a white lower body, alongside a pair of very intimidating eyes.

_Voltorb, the Ball Pokemon. Usually found in power plants. Easily mistaken for a Poke Ball, it has zapped many people._

Anne furrowed her brow and tossed her own Ball forth, releasing Meowth. It gave a stretch and rather squeaky yawn before standing up, staring at its opponent seriously. "You may now begin!" the announcer in the middle called.

"This'll be over in an instant!" Surge called, pointing forth dramatically. "Voltorb, start this off with a Tackle!"

The Electric-type immediately charged forth, bouncing off of the ground and rolling about like its namesake. Anne, however, grinned and shouted back, "I don't think so! Give it a Fake Out!"

Meowth's eyes appeared to sparkle before it lunged forth, promptly extending its paws before smacking them together, right as Voltorb came within striking distance. The rather loud smacking noise that sounded out afterwards caused the Ball Pokemon to topple to a halt, its eyes quivering in a daze while Surge grunted. "What?"

"Fake Out can only be used at the start of the fight, but it gives me a huge tactical advantage by stunning my opponent!" Anne retorted smartly, causing Ranoku to roll his eyes slightly from her overly smug tone. "Now, hit it with a Fury Swipes!"

The Normal-type's claws abruptly extended and it lunged forth, unleashing a large barrage of near invisible swipes. Voltorb winced and began to scoot backwards as it was repeatedly clawed at, leaving several fairly decent-sized scars all over its front. Surge runted all the while as Voltorb winced from the attacks, only for its eyes to snap back open, a sign that it was ready to counterattack. Anne seemed to notice this and grunted while Surge pointed forth, calling loudly, "Now it's my turn! Voltorb, Shock Wave!"

Several sparks began to fly out from Voltorb's body, causing Meowth's fur to begin standing on end and for its eyes to widen. A shockwave of lightning was promptly expelled, sending Meowth toppling backwards with a distressed hiss before it skidded to a halt, back on its feet and looking up with a grunt. "Wha..."

The Shock Wave had literally catapulted Voltorb into the air, where it span about rather ferociously, looking like a blur. Surge grinned a bit more as Meowth took a small step back, the Leader calling, "Sonicboom!"

As he called this, Voltorb's body began to glow slightly before several blades of energy began flying out from its body, swerving around the entire battlefield before homing in on Meowth. Its eyes widened and Anne stepped forth slightly, calling out in alarm, "Quick, dodge them! Up!"

Meowth obeyed, promptly leaping into the air as all of the blades impacted. A large explosion was expelled once they all made contact with each other, the resulting shockwave causing Meowth to be sent even higher into the air, right towards Voltorb. Surge chuckled once more as Voltorb's body bean glowing, the Gym Leader commanding, "Shock Wave!"

"I don't think so!" Anne retorted, clenching a fist and narrowing her gaze. "Faint Attack!"

Meowth's body abruptly became cloaked in purple light before it vanished, causing Voltorb to blink as the lightning attack zapped right past it. "What?" Surge grunted, glancing all around. "Where'd it go?"

Anne, however, only grinned as Meowth's hazy silhouette began to reappear from above. "Right here!"

Voltorb glanced upwards slightly as Meowth smashed down with both feet, sending the orb crashing down with considerable speed and smashing into the ground, causing a cloud of dust to erupt from the epicenter of the attack and for Surge's eyes to widen. "Agh! Voltorb!"

The smoke steadily began to clear, revealing the Ball Pokemon, now dazed and unconscious. "Hah! Gotcha!" Anne remarked haughtily, grinning and setting a hand on her hip. Meowth gave off a victorious meow and mimicked the motion while Surge returned his Pokemon.

"Heh...not bad," Surge murmured, pulling forth another Poke Ball and smirking. "But the fun's just getting started! This battle's not over yet!"

"I'd be disappointed if it were," Anne replied as Surge tossed his Ball forth, promptly unleashing a small, yellow-furred mouse-like Pokemon, with long thin ears, red cheeks, and a jagged tail.

_Pikachu, the Mouse Pokemon. Lives in forests away from people. It stores electricity in its cheeks for zapping an enemy if it is attacked._

Meowth stared off with its new opponent, furrowing its brow and causing Ranoku to chuckle faintly. "If I've learned anything from watching children's cartoons, it's that this matchup isn't going to end well for you, Anne."

"Oh yeah? And what makes you think that?" she retorted, glancing back at him with an unimpressed expression.

"Cat versus...practically EVERYTHING it is a predator to equals it getting its ass handed to it," Ranoku replied flatly, sipping from his drink. "Not to mention everyone knows that Pikachu versus Meowth typically ends with-"

"Don't start," Anne mumbled bluntly, turning back to the two competitors and narrowing her gaze. "Meowth, Fury Swipes!"

The cat Pokemon extended its claws once more and lunged forth, preparing a swipe while the Pikachu leaped into the air, clear over Meowth's head and causing it to look up slightly. Surge grinned and pointed downwards, shouting, "Thunder Wave!"

Pikachu's cheeks began to spark rather dangerously, only to abruptly release a large wave of electricity that streaked down to Meowth, causing it to yelp as its fur stood up on end, several stray sparks flying outwards from the attack. Once the light had faded, Meowth remained in one spot, twitching ever so slightly while some bolts of lightning streaked across its body. Pikachu, on the other hand, landed on the ground on all fours, bending down and smirking. "Now, finish it with a Quick Attack!" Surge commanded.

The Mouse Pokemon obeyed, promptly disappearing. It reappeared, however, a moment later to slam into Meowth, causing it to yelp in shock from the sudden jarring tackle that sent it toppling backwards, rolling to a halt at Anne's feet, unconscious. "No!"

"Told ya," Ranoku commented rather smugly, causing Anne to shoot him a glare before returning Meowth. As the girl fiddled around for her next Ball, Ranoku had began digging around for another can to replace his now empty one; however, after a few moments of searching, his smile began to fade. "...dammit, don't tell me I forgot to refill while we were back at the Center..."

Anne slowly glanced back at Ranoku with an incredulous expression, the teen abruptly turning around on one of his heels. "I'm going to be right back."

"What? But my battle isn't done yet!" the little girl retorted sharply, causing Ranoku to glance at her plainly.

"Oh come on...you don't need my help, and even if you did you wouldn't listen to me anyway. Case in point..."

Ranoku gestured towards Surge's Pikachu, who began scratching behind its ear while Anne sighed. "...fine. Just make sure you're back in time to witness me kick this musclehead's butt!"

"Caaaaaaaan do," the teen remarked rather cheerily, beginning to walk out and leaving Anne to stare back at Surge.

"Heh, so now you're all alone, pipsqueak?" the tall man asked, folding his arms with a confident grin.

"Maybe I am," Anne replied lowly, promptly tossing her Ball forth. Bellsprout emerged from the device in a pillar of light, waving its leaves around threateningly. "But WE don't need Ranoku's help to win this fight! Bellsprout, Vine Whip!"

Several vines emerged from the Flower Pokemon's body, promptly lunging towards Pikachu with great speed. Surge only grinned and waved a hand about, commanding, "Pikachu, Quick Attack away!"

The Mouse Pokemon leaped into the air with immense speed, appearing as only a blur and causing Bellsprout to glance upwards quickly as it veered back down towards it, head down in preparation for a tackle. "Quick, Stun Spore!" Anne called out quickly, causing Bellsprout's head to begin puffing out from the buildup of dust. Surge's smile faded slightly, replace dby a more contemplative expression.

"Fall back Pikachu, Double Team!" Right before the mouse could impact Bellsprout, it immediately split off into severalo clones that darted away, now beginning to dash around Bellsprout in a frenzy and avoiding a cloud of glittering, golden dust it expelled.

The Grass-type began to look around in confusion at all of the Pikachu clones, groaning lightly before extending its vines. "Take them all out!" Anne commanded, punching a clenched fist forward. "Vine Whip"

With one speedy motion, Bellsprout twirled about, swinging both vines in a wide arc and promptly attacking all of the Pikachu clones. They all immediately faded away after being hit, only to reveal the actual Pikachu gone. Anne's eyes widened and she quickly looked around, grunting, "Where did it go?"

"Right here!" Surge called back in an almost mocking tone; remembering her earlier comment using those exact same words, Anne's eyes shot open and she looked up, now watching Pikachu dive bomb Bellsprout from above.

"Quick! Stun Spore, above you!" she called in distress. The moment Bellsprout looked up, however, Pikachu had already come within range, its body sparking dangerously before letting loose a powerful electric shock, causing the flower to yelp loudly amidst the flashing lights before Pikachu skidded backwards, looking up slightly with a narrowed gaze.

Bellsprout, on the other hand, seemed to still be standing, though it was visibly shaken and twitched about, electricity arcing across its body and causing it to give off an occasional grunt. "Bellsprout!"

"Heh, it may have had the type advantage, but it seems I'm still going to emerge victorious," Surge remarked, chuckling faintly and motioning forth. "Think it'll want an honorable discharge while the going's good?"

"First off, may I say that was a terrible pun," Anne mumbled rather flatly, an eye twitching before she stepped forth a bit defiantly. "And second, we're not going to back down just yet! In fact, we're not backing down at ALL!"

In response to her words, Bellsprout began to straighten itself out, twitching about a bit more before staring at Pikachu defiantly, narrowing its gaze with another small grunt. The mouse remained unperturbed while Surge chuckled a bit more, his closing his eyes. "Hah...you AND your Pokemon've got guts...for such a little pipsqueak, I'm impressed."

Anne narrowed her gaze as surge waved both arms outwards a bit slowly, looking down slightly with another grin. "Alright then, let's do this. Pikachu, finish it!"

The Electric-type nodded and prepared to step forward; once it began to do so, however, the lightning arcing around Bellsprout began to fade, followed by the rest of its body suddenly becoming shrouded in light, its thin form completely white and accompanied by a loud shimmering noise. Surge's smile faded and Anne's eyes widened, the girl murmuring, "Wh-...is it...?"

Bellsprout's head seemed to enlarge, now even larger than its body was originally. As opposed to falling over from the size of its head, however, it only sunk down, its entire stem-like body seemingly being sucked into its form. Its leaves migrated to where its neck used to be, growing larger as well until its entire body vanished, leaving only its now much larger head and a stem slowly sprouting from the top. The light finally faded, revealing Bellsprout's new form; it retained the yellow color scheme as before, looking simply like a larger version of its head with larger, more bulbous eyes. "Huh..."

"Bellsprout evolved!" Anne called out with a rather confident grin, clenching her fists. "Now this battle's REALLY not over yet!"

**-Meanwhile-**

Vermillion City had completely darkened by this point, leaving the streetlights to light up the otherwise pitch black alleys. From a nearby vending machine on the dock, Ranoku was pulling out several cans, stowing the rest into his satchel while opening one of them. He took a quick swig and sighed, beginning to smile. "Aaahhh, carbonated mixture of water, caffeine, sweetener, and artificial flavor, how I love thee," Ranoku droned on a bit comically, beginning to walk off back away from the docks. "I'm pretty sure Anne hasn't gotten herself into TOO tight a spot from just this time, she's not as dumb as she..."

Ranoku slowly came to a halt, his smile fading. Though he was hidden in the darkness, a streetlight nearby enabled a different figure to be seen, one that Ranoku recognized all too well as Demitri. The teen shuffled off to the side behind a nearby building and furrowed his brow, murmuring lightly, "What's he doing out here...?"

Demitri only looked around, leaning against a fence and furrowing his brow. Porygon levitated by his side and glanced at its Trainer with a bit of concern, beeping lightly. He glanced back at the Virtual Pokemon and replied lowly, "Don't worry. We'll finish with this, and then leave."

Ranoku blinked slightly, his mind trailing off to wonder what "this" possibly was. He received his answer in the form of a faint clicking, shoes on sidewalk. Demitri slowly looked towards the source with a serious expression before its owner made themselves known; Ilohe. Seeing the girl caused Ranoku's grip to immediately tighten around his can, gaze narrowing. "What the hell is he doing..."

"Well, I see we're punctual," Ilohe remarked, smirking and flicking some of the hair from across her shoulder. "That's good."

"I always made sure to be on time," Demitri mumbled lowly, narrowing his gaze and causing Porygon to mimic his reaction.

Zack and Hayden steadily followed Ilohe out afterwards, the girl chuckling faintly and nodding. "Heh...good, good. It shows your diligent. But it'd take more than that to be a good student under Ranoku, am I right?"

The aforementioned teen narrowed his gaze, though Demitri remained unperturbed. "Stop dancing around the question, especially since I already know what you want."

Ilohe's smirk faded from Demitri's rather blunt comment, and she sighed slightly. "...hmph, bit of a firespitter, I see. Alright then, I'll come out with it." She slowly extended a hand towards Demitri, grinning maliciously once more. "Join with me, and I promise you'll become much stronger than you ever would with Ranoku."

Demitri remained stoic, though Ranoku's eyes had widened in anger, gnashing his teeth together. "She...ISN'T..."

"I've thought about it this entire time..." Demitri mumbled in a slightly droning fashion, tilting his head back and looking up at the moon overhead. Porygon followed his gaze as the teen continued, "From both our battles, I could get but a little hint at what kind of training methods you use based off of what you said..."

Ilohe continued to smirk while Zack folded his arms, narrowing his gaze as Demitri turned back to her, glancing at the girl's outstretched hand. He went to grab at it, Ranoku's eyes widening even further as he gave off a low growl. Ilohe, on the other hand, simply smirked wider, giving off a steadily louder chuckle. Right before Demitri grasped onto it, however, he promptly smacked it away, the sound piercing through the air and causing everyone to jump, Ilohe's eyes shoting open and Ranoku's enraged expression fading. Zack and Hayden both gawked at Demitri, the former murmuring, "What..."

"You can keep your offer," Demitri uttered bluntly, narrowing his gaze and lowering his hand back. "I don't want to train under someone like you."

Ilohe narrowed her gaze with a light grunt, retracting her hand and gently massaging it. "Excuse me...?"

"I know what you're going to do. You just want to use me for your little revenge scheme against Ranoku," Demitri explained, narrowing his gaze. "I do NOT like being used. Having my decisions outlined for me...I prefer to pick my own paths. It's one of the main reasons I was so skeptic of becoming a Trainer in the first place."

Ilohe's eyes began to narrow with a growl getting increasingly loud. "Not to mention the fact I don't agree with you using me, or Zack for that matter, just to get back at Ranoku." The teen's gaze shifted ever so slightly to the boy. "You can deny it all you want, but you can't fool me. He's every bit as expendable to you as Ranoku proved I was to him. Come enough losses and you'll probably toss him aside just like he did me."

The words seemed to strike a chord with Ranoku, whose eyes widened; a dark scene passed through his mind's eye, a whirling, brown object hovering overhead and striking downwards, a bladed portion pointing downwards. He slowly looked down as Zack furrowed his gaze, though he did look away with a thoughtful expression as if to contemplate Demitri's words. "I give you the offer ot a lifetime...and this is what I get in return?" Ilohe snapped, beginning to growl steadily louder. "You ungrateful little brat..."

She went to approachy Demitri, however, Porygon floated in the way with a defensive beep, wearing an angry expression on its face. Ilohe glared and promptly smacked the Normal-type away, though her arm was just as quickly grabbed by Demitri. "Touch him again and I won't hesitate to hit a girl," Demitri mumbled sharply. "If that's even what you are."

Ilohe narrowed her gaze with a growl. "Now you outright threaten me...? Hmph...you've obviously got a death wish!"

Suddenly, a figure emerged from the shadows behind Ilohe; Arbok, who raised itself into the air above them and hissed, opening its mouth threateningly. Demitri narrowed his gaze as Porygon levitated forth, glancing at the snake defiantly. Zack and Hayden slowly glanced at Ilohe, the former murmuring, "What are you...?"

"I'm not going to take an insult like that sitting down," Ilohe remarked, casting a glare at Zack. "And if I were you I'd make sure not to do the same." She turned back at Demitri, motioning forth. "Arbok, attack!"

The cobra Pokemon promptly lunged forth, mouth outstretched and with a loud hiss. Demitri took a step back as Porygon levitated forth, its Trainer saying, "Porygon, launch a-"

Demitri didn't get to finish his command as a pink flash shot by them, promptly knocking Arbok to the ground. Everyone blinked in shock as the source of the attack landed; of course, it was a familiar Sneasel. Ilohe's yes widened as a new pair of footsteps became heard, the familiar voice of Ranoku murmuring, "I don't much appreciate you making death threats to my student."

All eyes turned to the source, just in time to watch Ranoku step out from the shadows, a serious expression on his face and an energy drink in hand. Demitri frowned slightly while Ilohe scowled, barking, "Butt out! You ditched him, so you have no right to swoop in and claim him as yours!"

"You talk about me like I'm a possession," Demitri murmured flatly, hanging his head with a small sweatdrop.

"Quiet you," Ranoku and Ilohe both remarked in unison, not taking their eyes off of each other and causing Demitri to shrug hopelessly. "Maybe I did doubt him momentarily...but after a bit of reflection, perhaps it was I that was in the wrong this time."

Demitri and Ilohe both blinked, glancing at Ranoku as he looked down, his eyes drooping slightly. "Hmph...typical, that you'd come in right when I try to take him under my wing. You're so childish, Ranoku," Ilohe sighed, glancing at Demitri with a glare. "And as for you...I won't forget this transgression. Next time we meet, you'll pay for this." The girl returned her Arbok, turning around. "Zack, Hayden! We're going."

"Uh...right, yeah," the former mumbled, slowly glancing back at Demitri. The two simply exchanged a stoic look before walking off into the shadows, seemingly disappearing; the only sign they departed was a dark figure taking off into the air.

Once they were out of earshot, Demitri slowly glanced back at Ranoku, adopting a serious expression. "So, out with it. Why did you come back? I highly doubt it really was because Ilohe tried to take me."

"That was an ironically coincidental turn of events, but was satisfying nontheless," Ranoku replied, glancing at Demitri and sighing. "But...I really do want to apologize, the way I acted was uncalled for."

Demitri's harsh expression began to deteriorate slightly as Ranoku glanced back up. "It takes more than power or vengeance to be a good Trainer. Compassion, trust...I forgot that for a moment because I was so caught up in beating Ilohe, and basically turned into the thing I was working against."

With this comment, Ranoku extended his other hand, looking up at Demitri. "Can you find it in you to forgive me?"

A few moments passed by in silence, Demitri staring at Ranoku's hand with a serious expression. He slowly lifted it up, now looking as though he were preparing to slap it away; however, he instead swung it into Ranoku's grasp and grabbed a hold of it, giving a few somewhat jerking shakes. "I suppose I could forgive you this once. Just so long as you don't let your rivalry get in the way again."

Ranoku blinked slightly, only to smirk a bit cockily from Demitri's questionable tone. "Hah...I'm not making any promises."

"Fair enough," Demitri mumbled, giving a shrug. "It'd be easier to have someone who knows their way around Kanto anyway...even if it's a dork like you and his hateful little she-devil." Demitri slowly glanced around, furrowing his brow. "Speaking of which, where is she...?"

"In the middle of a Gym battle," Ranoku replied, glancing in the direction of the Gym with a small sigh. "She's already pissed off that I left her in the middle of the battle, bringing you back is only gonna make her mood worse."

"Too bad," Demitri mumbled flatly, rolling his eyes. "If I'm willing to come along and put up with her, she can do the same with me."


	33. Together Again

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 33-Together Again

**Battle Re-cap**

**Pkmn Trainer Anne  
Meowth (KOed by Pikachu)**  
**Bellsprout - Weepinbell  
?**

**Gym Leader Surge  
Voltorb (KOed by Meowth)**  
**Pikachu  
?**

_Weepinbell, the Flycatcher Pokemon. The evolved form of Bellsprout. When hungry, it swallows anything that moves. Its hapless prey is melted inside by strong acids._

Surge couldn't help but furrow his brow as Anne leaped up and down, pumping her fists about all the while and cheering. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

"Hmph..." the taller man murmured, beginning to smirk. "You still haven't won this fight yet, missy."

Surge's Pikachu growled slightly to prove his point, prompting Anne to stop hopping and point forward with a confident smirk. "You're right, I haven't! So it's time I got this show BACK on the road! Weepinbell, Acid!"

The Grass-type promptly bounded into the air impressively, prompting Surge and Pikachu to glance upwards as it closed its mouth, promptly firing off several wads of yellowish colored liquid. The Electric-type avoided each attack with surprising efficiency, leaping away before dashing towards Weepinbell. "Hit it with a Quick Attack!"

"Stun Spore!" Anne commanded, prompting Weepinbell to promptly expel a cloud of dust right as Pikach impacted it, causing both to begin falling once more plopping to the ground. Weepinbell hopped back up while Pikachu stood back with a twitch and groan, wincing while the glittering spores sparkled off of it. "Gotcha!"

Surge grunted slightly once again, clenching his fists and grinding his teeth. "This ain't over just yet! Pikachu, Shock Wave!"

The Mouse Pokemon's body began sparking rather dangerously, causing Anne and Weepinbell to blink, the latter inching back slightly. "We're not done yet..." Anne growled slightly, motioning forth. "Vine Whip, quickly!"

Weepinbell obeyed, a pair of vines promptly lashing out from its leaves towards Pikachu. The Mouse Pokemon glanced upwards, giving a small blink as both plowed into it, knocking it toppling backwards before skidding to a halt, groaning and shivering. "No!" Surge grunted, watching as his Electric-type attempted to sit back up, only to flop back down in exhaustion, giving off a last squeak in the process.

"HA! Two down, one to go!" Anne remarked confidently, smirking even wider and pointing forth dramatically. "I don't think you'd be willing to take back your earlier comment just yet now, will ya?"

Surge returned the Pikachu to its Ball, instead chuckling lightly and furrowing his brow. "You've got more spunk than I thought you would, no doubt about that, little pipsqueak...but now the REAL battle begins!"

The Gym Leader pulled forth one last Poke Ball and tossed it forth, promptly releasing his final Pokemon in a wave of light. The resulting Pokemon was still somewhat short, covered in orange fur with a white-colored underbelly and yellow cheeks very similar to Pikachu's, curved ears, elongated feet, and a very long, black, wiry tail with a lightning bolt design sticking from the top. The Pokemon smirked with a light chuckle, causing Weepinbell and Anne to blink in surprise.

_Raichu, the Mouse Pokemon. The evolved form of Pikachu. Its electrical attacks may reach 10,000 volts. It discharges electricity from its tail, so it is not harmed by its own power._

Anne stared at her new opponent with a sly grin, leaning to one side and resting a hand on her hip. "Hah. Is that it? You talk about me being a pipsqueak, but that little rat's not much better."

The Raichu only grinned, Surge chuckling and closing his eyes. "Haha...there's a difference. Raichu's got a lot of power behind him!" The Gym Leade rpointed forth, shouting, "Shock Wave!"

Raichu's cheeks began to spark once more, lightning trailing up into its tail before shooting a large blast from the tip. Weepinbell expertly leaped into the air to avoid, Anne chuckling. "Give it a Vine Whip, Weepinbell!"

The Grass-type obeyed, slinging two tendrils towards Raichu at a great speed and prompting the mouse to stomp both feet on the ground. Right as the vines came within striking distance, Raichu managed to snatch them out of the air, grabbing a hold of them and causing Anne's smirk to fade. "What the?"

"Raichu, Quick Attack!" Surge commanded, prompting the Electric-type to charge towards its opponent, still gripping onto its vines.

Weepinbell's eyes widened, prompting Anne to grunt and blink slightly. "Urr...Stun Spore, quick!"

The Grass-type immediately coughed up a large dust of sparkling golden dust, only for Raichu to expertly leap over the attack, causing Anne and Weepinbell to glance up at it. Surge grinned once more and motioned forth forcefully, shouting out, "Thunder Wave!"

A bolt of lightning was expelled from Raichu's body with considerable force, causing Weepinbell to screech as the electricity trailed through its vines, causing it to twitch and thrash about before Raichu landed, its opponent now motionless, its vines slipping off of its body. Anne's eyes widened, the girl yelping, "Weepinbell!"

"Now finish it with a Shock Wave!" Surge commanded, causing Raichu to immediately fire forth another blast of lightning from its tail, smashing into Weepinbell and sending it toppling backwards. The Grass-type rolled to a halt in front of Anne, who looked down at it with a shocked expression.

"W-Weepinbell!" she gasped, looking up at the now laughing Surge before returning the Flycatcher Pokemon. She frowned with an irate expression and pulled forth another Poke Ball, calling, "Laugh it up all you'd like, I've still got one Pokemon left!"

Surge glanced back down with another chuckle, arms folded. "Is that right...? Well, let's just see what it can do!"

Raichu smirked once more as Anne tossed it forth, releasing Wigglytuff onto the field amidst a flash of light. The Balloon Pokemon bounced slightly in place with some excited squeaks, causing Surge to laugh rather energetically once more. "Hahaha! Cutesy Pokemon for a little girl, seems like!"

"Hey hey, Wigglytuff may be cutesy, but it's got a LOT of power behind her!" Anne retorted, smirking and pointing forth dramatically. "Wigglytuff, kick us off with a Rollout!"

The Normal-type immediately tucked in its limbs, bouncing about before jetting off towards its opponent. Raichu blinked slightly from the sudden charge, Surge shouting, "Dodge with a Quick Attack, then retaliate with Thunder Wave!"

Raichu immediately darted out of the way, rolling to a halt as Wigglytuff began to veer around, preparing another charge. The Electric-type responded by shooting off several bolts of lightning from its tail, all of which Wigglytuff swerved out of the way up before bounding above Raichu, unfurling its body. "Now, Body Slam!"

"Retaliate with Quick Attack!" Surge commanded, prompting the two to jet towards each other. Raichu plowed itself head-first into Wigglytuff's stomach, causing it to wince and groan as its own momentum caused both Pokemon to slam into the ground with a thud. Wigglytuff quickly hopped back with a slight cough, Raichu standing back up with a shiver and glare at its opponent. "You alright there, soldier?"

Raichu respodned with a sideways thumbs up, prompting Surge to grin once more and nod. "Alright...it's time the gloves came off then! Double Team!"

The Mouse Pokemon gave off a loud shout at this, several clones of it promptly forming and circling all around Wigglytuff, completely surrounding it. The Normal-type glances all around in confusion, Anne grunting slightly. "Now, Shock Wave!"

All of the clones fired off a large bolt of lightning from their tails, streaking towards Wigglytuff. "Dodge it!" Anne shouted, prompting the Normal-type to leap into the air, taking in a deep breath. "Now, Hyper Voice!"

A rather loud and powerful sonic scream and unleashed, distorting the air underneath Wigglytuff and causing all of the Raichu clones to wince and bow down, promptly vanishing to reveal that the real Raichu was now gone. Surge grinned once more, shouting out, "Raichu, Shock Wave!"

"Oohh, no, I'm not falling for that trick again!" anne shouted, prompting Wigglytuff to twist about; sure enough, just like Pikachu before it, Raichu was now perched overhead, its entire body spatking dangerously. "Hyper Voice!"

Wigglytuff shot forth another powerful wave of sonic sound, right as Raichu unleashed its lightning attack. The distorted air caused the electric attack to begin fizzling before dissipating, Raichu wincing as the attack propelled it even higher into the air, slamming into the ceiling. "Raichu!" Surge shouted, watching as both Pokemon fell; Wigglytuff hit the floor first, though Raichu was soon following. "Quick Attack, one more time!"

Raichu obeyed, promptly jetting downwards even faster and causing Wigglytuff to glance upwards. "I don't think so..." Anne murmured, narrowing her gaze. "Wigglytuff, inhale!"

The Balloon Pokemon obeyed, promptly taking in another large gulp of air that caused its entire body to expand and bulge outwards. Raichu blinked as it promptly slammed into Wigglytuff's larger body, causing the skin to flex very much like its namesake and causing Wigglytuff to wince. Surge grunted slightly as Wigglytuff's body immediately snapped back to normal, catapulting Raichu through the air with a yelp. "No!"

Raichu was immediately slammed into the wall over Surge's head, causing it to give off a squeak and wince before slowly sliding off, plopping to the ground rather unceremoniously. The Gym Leader and Anne stared after it expectantly as the Electric-type attempted to stand back up, only to collapse back down in exhaustion. "YES!" Anne shouted rather loudly, pumping a fist into the air victoriously.

"Well, for a moment there I didn't think you were gonna do it." Anne immediately whirled around, to find Ranoku and Demitri now standing at the entrance, the former with a smirk and nod.

This incited a rather confident expression from Anne, who placed both hands on her hips. "Yeah, well, you don't need to worry about me! I've got all this in the bag!" She cast a rather superior glance at Demitri, adding, "Perhaps YOU could learn a thing or two from watching me win!"

The aforementioned teen retained a stoic expression, a moment of awkwardness passing before Anne's smirk faded and she pointed at Demitri rather accusingly. "Wait a minute, what the HELL are you doing here anyway?"

"Anne, language," Ranoku replied rather forcefully, causing the girl to wince and recoil. "And as for what he's doing here, I realised that I may have been in the wrong when we had our fight the other day, so we made up and he's going to be travelling with us again."

Anne began to sputter at this, glancing between the two teens with a shocked expression, mouth hanging open. Ranoku began to furrow his brow at this, murmuring, "This won't be a problem now, will it...?"

His fairly ominous tone earned a curious expression from Demitri and a sigh from Anne, who hung her head in defeat. "No sir..."

"Good!" Ranoku finished with an unusually cheery tone, glancing at Surge as he approached. The man smirked slightly and glanced down at Anne as she turned around, immediately reapplying her confident expression.

"So, seems like you did beat me, fair and square," the man mused, giving a nod and reaching into his pocket. "Guess I underestimated ya, pipsqueak. You've earned the Thunder Badge."

Surge tossed the aforementioend badge towards Anne, who juggled it around before getting a firm grip, looking down at it; the badge was vaguely sunflower shaped, with an orange center and several yellow, pointed extensions around it. Anne smirked once more and pulled forth her badge case, slipping it inside with a nod. "Thaaaaaaank you."

"Great! Now all we have to do is wait until Demitri snags his badge and we'll be ready to go." Anne's smirk faded into exasperation and she hung her head, an obvious sign of her displeasure.

Surge glanced at Ranoku slightly, raising an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? Another challenger?"

"That'd be me," Demitri replied calmly, Surge glancing at him with a chuckle.

"Heh, well then, I look forward to seein' ya on the field of battle, soldier!" the Leader remarked, giving a salute that caused Demitri to pause before slowly returning the gesture.

"Not tonight, though," Ranoku replied, setting his arm on Demitri's shoulder and reclining on him a bit lazily. The teen glanced at his mentor with a hint of annoyance as he waved his energy drink can about, murmuring, "Pretty late, and we've kept you up far enough past closing time. Not to mention we've got a little bit of training to do before we challenge this place again anyway."

Surge nodded slightly as Ranoku turned around, dragging Demitri with him and motioning to the door. "We shall return tomorrow!"

The two teens began to walk off at this, Anne slowly glancing at Surge, then at the duo before following. "Riiiiiiight..."

**-The following day-**

The clock overhead in the Pokemon Center read 5 in the morning as Ranoku and Anne snuck through the hall, fully dressed. The older teen gave an silent "shushing" motion towards Anne, lifting up the air horn he had used on Demitri in Pewter City. Both slowly slid into the room the teen had been sleeping in, where his covers remained bunched up as a sign they were inhabited. Ranoku cast a rather wide, mischievous grin at Anne, who simply rolled her eyes as the teen placed the funnel of the horn next to the pillow, pressing on the button and releasing a rather loud, obnoxious squeal.

No reaction seemed to come from the covers, though several shouts of complaint were heard from the other sides of the walls, causing Ranoku and Anne to exchange a glance. "Maybe the air horn isn't the best idea."

"You think?" Anne replied in a heavily sarcastic fashion, glancing at the motionless covers. "...what, does he have earplugs or something?" She immediately tore back the covers, only to reveal that, as opposed to Demitri himself, Kadabra was laying in the spot, staring at them with a serious expression. "The hell? Where's..."

"Were you looking for me?" Ranoku and Anne slowly glanced around, finding Demitri standing in the doorway behind them, fully clothed, with Porygon hovering by his side. Both gave a small blink as Demitri shifted the glasses on his face, mumbling, "Yeah, that's not going to work on me again. Nice try."

"Phooey," Ranoku mumbled, placing the air horn in his satchel and approaching. "Ah well, that shaves some time off of our training schedule waiting for you to wake up."

Demitri nodded slightly as Kadabra teleported to his side, the group now stepping out of the room. "It was kinda routine after the way you woke me up before," Demitri mumbled with a small sigh, Porygon buzzing slightly in agreement.

"Good, good," Ranoku mused with a grin, chuckling and pulling out another energy drink can. "Shows that my training is working. Now we can get on to the regimen for this Gym I set up for you."

The group finally exitted the Center, now in some sort of recreational area where a fairly decent-sized obstacle course was set up, a few Magnemite hanging overhead and buzzing slightly. Demitri and Anne both blinked, Ranoku strolling into the course with a grin. "Set this up before you guys woke up."

"But...ALL of this?" Demitri mused in shock, looking around slightly while Anne glanced at Ranoku.

"I didn't see you set this up when I was awake!" she remarked, Ranoku shrugging.

"Well, that's because I set it up before you woke up," he replied, causing his two students to gawk at him in amazement. Their eyes went to his energy drink as he began to gulp its contents again, causing them to sweatdrop slightly.

"...well, now we know where all that excess energy is going," Demitri mumbled flatly, Anne sighing.

"It's amazing he isn't dead right now from caffeine overdose..." she added in exasperation.


	34. Battle for the Thunder Badge

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 34-Battle for the Thunder Badge

Despite having started training at the Pokemon Center, Demitri, Ranoku, and Anne had since then changed venues to a more spread-out field on the outskirts of Vermillion, enough so that they could see the nearby buildings and taste the salt of the ocean in the air. Porygon currently flew circles around nearby attacking Magnemite, swerving around obstacles and lightning bolts before firing back Psybeams. "Good, good, keep it up!" Demitri called out, glancing at the nearby Kadabra, who was facing off several Magnemite.

With a fairly loud buzzing noise, all of them fired off a blast of lightning, forcing Kadabra to lift his claws upwards, summoning a large wall of light that delected all of the attacks, causing them to impact harmlessly. Demitri couldn't help but smile slightly and nod as he watched the Psychic-type hold up its defense, only to begin wincing as a tiny crack began to appear in the wall. Demitri's smile faded almost as quickly and he stepped forth slightly. "Wall down!"

Kadabra promptly lowered the barrier as the lightning bolts came to a halt, panting slightly while Demitri approached the Psi Pokemon. Ranoku and Anne sat nearby on a rock, the latter kicking her feet through the air while the former sipped from an energy drink. "Well, at least the Light Screen stayed up longer than last time," he commented, beginning to smile. "Shows that he's at least getting better at sustaining it."

Demitri glanced back at the teen as Porygon flew by, only for a spare lightning bolt to comedangerously close to zapping its Trainer and forcing him to duck with a shout. "Hey! Watch where you're firing those!" Demitri shouted angrily, groaning with a sigh.

Anne simply rolled her eyes and glanced at Ranoku out of the side of her eye, mumbling, "No wonder they kicked us out of the Pokemon Center, those things have awful aim..."

"Hey, at least we fixed the power outage, didn't we?" Ranoku replied defensively, only for Demitri to approach with folded arms and a frown.

"I fixed the problem, there was no 'we'," he replied bluntly, sighing slightly and hanging his head. "I almost forgot what it was like having to put up with you two..."

Anne hopped down from her perch on the rock and set her hands on her hips, sticking her lowerr lip outwards with a pout. "Well if you don't like being around us, then get the heck outta here!"

"I never said that," Demitri replied calmly, tilting his head awa and closing his eyes. "You're an...interesting sort, I'd rather not be bored out of my mind while I was collecting Gym badges."

The little girl cast him a glare, only for the both of them to be pulled into a shoulder hug by a stupidly grinning Ranoku. "Aahh, isn't it so great to be together again?"

"No," Anne replied abruptly, Ranoku releasing the both of them and crushing his now empty can. "Are we done here? We're already behind schedule, we should've left for the next town ages ago!"

Ranoku, on the other hand, glanced at Anne with a smug smirk and waggled a finger. "Not exactly...we're actually ahead of schedule considering how hasty you were to get off the S.S. Anne and get your badge."

At this time, the teen reached into his satchel and pulled out what looked to be a fairly fat stack of pages, unfurling them and causing a few folded up ones to droop to the ground. Demitri's eyes widened slightly as Ranoku ran his fingers across some of the pages. "If Demitri gets his badge today, we can probably make excellent time in reaching our next destination, no problem!"

Anne sighed slightly and hung her head as Ranoku began to stuff the ridiculous amount of pages in his satchel, zipping it back up while Demitri stared at him slightly. "How does all of that fit in there...?"

"Rule of Funny, my naive protege," Ranoku replied smartly, returning all of the Magnemite and pointing dramatically towards the city gates. "Comne along, you two! We have a badge to get! Again!"

**-Later-**

"Hahahah, so I see you came back after all, toothpick!"

Demitri now stood across from Lt. Surge in the Gym's battlefield, both staring off; the former retained a serious expression while his opponent smirked widely with folded arms. "Of course. Did you think I was going to get cold feet or something?"

"Actually, I kinda did," Surge replied with a chuckle and closed his eyes. "But it's good to see you've got some backbone! Maybe this'll be an interesting fight after all!"

"At the very least it'll be that," Demitri replied sharply, both sides pulling forth a Poke Ball. "Three Pokemon each, right...?"

Surge's smirk only widened and he gripped his Poke Ball tighter. "Hah, this kid's got brains! But you're going to need a lot more guts if you plan to beat me!"

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Gym Leader Surge **  
**Location: Vermillion City Gym **  
**Single Battle**

With this comment, Surge tossed his Poke Ball forth, promptly unleashing a Voltorb that skidded to a halt on the ground, glancing upwards with a serious expression and buzzing noise. Demitri on the other hand furrowed his brow and tossed forth his own Poke Ball, releasing Aerodactyl to the field with a loud shriek.

The choice seemed to catch Ranoku and Anne off-guard, the latter frowning rather deeply and shouting, "The heck are you doing? Aerodactyl's at a clear disadvantage!"

Demitri furrowed his brow in thought as the Fossil Pokemon stretched its wings. "Maybe...but the only reason I won my last Gym battle in Cerulean was because my Abra evolved..."

The memory of the rather close fight with Starmie came fleeting back, prompting Demitri to close his eyes. "I've decided that just because I have a disadvantagous matchup, it doesn't mean that I shouldn't at least try it...Aerodactyl is strong, I think he's got this."

The Rock-type gave off a toothy grin from its Trainers comment, causing Surge to chuckle to himself. "Heh, maybe I was wrong, you do have some guts...Voltorb, let's test this kid!" The lieutenant forcefully pointed forth and shouted, "Sonicboom!"

Voltorb began to spin about in place, promptly summoning several shockwaves that were flung at Aerodactyl, the Flying-type narrowing its gaze. "Agility!" Demitri shouted.

Right before the shockwaves could land, Aerodactyl seemingly disappeared, leaving nothing but an afterimage to be sliced by Voltorb's attack. Surge's smile faded as his Pokemon glanced about, buzzing in curiosity. "It vanished!"

"Aerodactyl are very fast Pokemon," Demitri explained, shifting about the glasses on his nose with a stoic gaze. "Electric-types are also quite fast, but from what I'm seeing, yours aren't exactly geared towards that like Aerodactyl is."

As Demitri finished his claim, Aerodactyl reappeared above Voltorb, causing Surge to glance upwards with a blink. "Above you, Voltorb! Shock Wave!"

The Ball Pokemon immediately began to spark rather viciously, Aerodactyl screeching while Demitri narrowed his gaze. "Supersonic!"

Aerodactyl took a deep breath and unleashed an ear-piercing screech, the air distorting below it and causing Voltorb to wince slightly, though its sparking only slightly died down. "Heh...that's not going to work, toothpick. Voltorb's ability is Soundproof!" Surge shouted, grinning widely. "Supersonic isn't going to have any effect!"

"That's good, I wasn't trying to have it affect Voltorb itself anyway," Demitri replied blankly, causing Surge's smile to fade. Voltorb promptly expelled a blast of lightning, however, the intense sound waves caused it to become much hazier and lesser composed than would be expected, enabling Aerodactyl to quickly tilt its body to the side, causing the attack to sail right past it.

Surge's eyes widened from the rather abruptly change, while Ranoku smirked slightly. "Hmph...he was just using Supersonic to disrupt Voltorb's electricity enough for him to have an easier time evading...leave it to Demitri to color outside the lines there."

"Tch...you may've gotten a little crafty there, but..." Surge grinned once more as the electrical blast began to strengthen itself back, now beginning to veer back down towards Aerodactyl. "Shock Wave homes in on my target's location, it can't simply be avoided!"

Demitri remained silent for a moment more, only for Aerodactyl to glance back down at Voltorb. "Bite."

With one swift motion, Aerodactyl clamped down on Voltorb with its still opened up mouth, clenching the Ball Pokemon in its teeth and causing it to buzz rather loudly. Glancing upwards at the incoming Shock Wave, Aerodactyl flung Voltorb upwards, causing it to impact the incoming blast with a loud buzz and explosion, Surge's eyes widening. "Voltorb!"

"Finish the job with a Wing Attack!" Demitri called out, causing Aerodactyl to rocket up to the smoke cloud and smack Voltorb out of the air, sending the gently sparking Electric-type into the ground with a crash, bouncing to a halt and buzzing weakly, eyes drooped shut. "And that's one down."

Aerodactyl screeched victoriously while Ranoku smiled, nodding and glancing at Anne, who folded her arms with a huff. "...so maybe he's gotten a few more tricks since we last saw him..."

Surge smirked slightly and returned Voltorb to its Ball, replacing it within a moment with another. "Heh...gotta admit, that was some fancy footwork there..."

Demitri nodded slightly, glancing at Aerodactyl, whose gaze kept going to the wing it had smacked Voltorb with, which now had a barely noticeable scorch mark and gave off an occasional spark. "Maybe...but it was only a close call..."

"Let's see how many more of them you can pull out," Surge remarked, tossing a Poke Ball forth and unleashing Pikachu, who gave a stretch and squeak before leaning upwards. "Show 'em, Pikachu! Quick Attack!"

The Mouse Pokemon immediately rocketed forth, leaving behind a few afterimages while Aerodactyl alighted into the air, barely managing to avoid the smaller creature grazing at its side. The Rock-type wince and glanced around as Pikachu skidded to a halt, Demitri narrowing his gaze. "Supersonic!"

Aerodactyl unleashed a piercing screech in Pikachu's direction, causing the mouse to wince and shrink back, covering its ears. As it did this, however, its body began to quiver slightly, flickering for a second and causing Demitri's eyes to widen. "It's a trap!"

Right as the teen said this, the real Pikachu reappeared overhead, its body sparking dangerously and causing Aerodactyl to glance up at it. "Shock Wave, now!" Surge shouted, causing the Electric-type to unleash a powerful blast of lightning downwards.

Its taget grunted and prepared to lean back, however, another spatrk emanated rom its injured wing and caused Aerodactyl to wince and lock up, leaving it to be completely blasted by the oncoming attack, Demitri's eyes shooting open. "Aerodactyl!"

The electric attack dissipated a moment later, revealing a now charred Aerodactyl who fell backwards, now completely unconscious and groaning gently. "Heh! You let your guard down a little early there!" Surge shouted, prompting Demitri to return Aerodactyl with a furrowed brow.

"Maybe..." he murmured lightly, tossing forth another Ball and unleashing Kadabra, who slowly stood up with a serious expression on its face. "That's not going to happen again, I promise you. Kadabra, start off with a Confusion!"

The Psychic-type's eyes began glowing brightly, its spoon-wielding hand lifting into the air. "Pikachu, dodge and move in for a Quick Attack!" Surge commanded, the mouse quickly leaping to the side to avoid an invisible wave of psychic energy before shooting towards Kadabra, who narrowed its gaze and crouched slightly in defense.

"Move aside with Teleport!" Demitri called out, immediately causing Kadabra to vanish in a flash of light, reappearing a moment later out of range. Pikachu looked up and began to dat after Kadabra, though the Psi Pokemon would immediately warp away before the attack could land before finally popping into existence behind Pikachu.

"Ya like running away, eh...?" Surge murmured, grinning and motioning forth. "Pikachu, Shock Wave!"

The Electric-type whirled around towards Kadabra, its entire body beginning to spark before a large blast of lightning was shot towards Kadabra. Demitri narrowed his gaze beore shouting out, "Block it with Light Screen!"

Kadabra's eyes began to glow brightly and it lifted up its other claw, immediately summoning a wall of light in front of itself that deflected the attack. Surge blinked as the sparks from the attack bounced along the ground harmlessly, Kadabra wincing and beginning to push forward. "Hardy guy, I'll give it that..."

Demitri shifted about the glasses on his face before leisurely motioning forth once again, lifting a finger upwards. "Kinesis."

With one swift motion, Kadabra bent down its spoon, immediately lockiing eyes with Pikachu and causing its own eyes to widen. The mouse gave off an exasperated squeak and staggered backwards, holding onto its head in pain. Surge blinked in surprise, calling out, "Pikachu, you alright out there, what's going on? Report, soldier!"

Surge quickly glanced back at Demitri, who lowered his hand and closed his eyes coolly. "Finish it with a Confusion."

With Kadabra's open claw, it thrust forward, sending a wave of psychic energy right through the Light Screen and smashing it with a loud crashing noise, slamming into Pikachu and sending the mouse flying backwards. Surge's eyes widened as the yellow Pokemon collapsed onto the ground, now motionless. "And that's two."

The Gym Leader gave off a small smirk before returning Pikachu to its Ball, pulling forth one more. "Heheh...you may be on a roll now, but your victory train stops here!"

Surge flung forth the next Poke Ball, the device snapping open in a pillar of light to unveil the familiar figure of Raichu. The orange rat smirked slightly as Demitri raised an eyebrow. "That's it, huh...?"

"Hey, I'd be careful if I were you, nooby!" Anne shouted, leaning forth from her spot. "That thing's pretty tough!"

Demitri closed his eyes with a small sigh as Ranoku dragged Anne back, waggling a finger. "Tsk tsk tsk, don't be giving him tips..."

"But you give ME tips!" Anne retorted irritably, a vein popping from her head. "Why can't I give any to him?"

"Because I'm the teacher," Ranoku replied smartly, waggling a finger towards her. "Plus, you get mad when I give you tips, he doesn't."

A few moments passed in silence, one of Anne's eyes beginning to twitch. "...that doesn't make ANY sense!"

"Kadabra, set Light Screen back up," Demitri called, the Psychic-type immediately putting up another wall of energy. "Just to be on the safe side..."

Surge only grinned slowly, beginning to point forward. "Smart move, kid, but it won't save you! Raichu, Shock Wave!"

The Electric-type quickly unleashed a large blast of lightning towards Kadabra, who blinked and lifted up its claws as if to strengthen the barrier when it impacted. As opposed to Pikachu's attack, none of the bolts flew off course following the attack, smashing into the barrier and causing Kadabra to cringe, its knees beginning to buckle. Demitri's eyes widened slightly, and he murmured, "Kadabra, are you-"

Suddenly, the Shock Wave attack pierced right through the barrier, smashing into Kadabra with a groan as it was sent flying backwards, toppling to a halt and skidding, now unconcious. Demitri blinked in shock as Surge gave off a laugh, shouting out, "What'd I tell ya?"

Demitri quickly bent down to Kadabra's side, Ranoku's smile fading into a serious expression. "Granted Kadabra are fragile...but for it to have went through Light Screen and still knock it out in a single hit...?"

The teen slowly stood back up and returned Kadabra to its Ball, glancing up at Surge and Raichu, the latter of which was beginning to flex slightly. "One more Pokemon left...think you can handle it?"

"...I don't think I can handle it," Demitri replied stoically, pulling forth his last Poke Ball and narrowing his gaze. "I know that my Pokemon can, though."

With one swift motion, Demitri tossed the Ball forth, releasing Porygon in a flash of light. The mechanical creature quivered upon entering and glanced upwards with a buzz, Surge grinning with a chuckle. "I like your spirit, toothpick...here's to hoping you give me one hell of a battle!"


	35. Battle for the Thunder Badge part 2

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 35-Battle for the Thunder Badge Part 2

**Battle Re-cap**

**Pkmn Trainer Demitri  
Aerodactyl (KO'ed by Pikachu)**  
**Kadabra (KO'ed by Raichu)**  
**Porygon**

**vs.**

**Gym Leader Surge  
Voltorb (KO'ed by Aerodactyl)**  
**Pikachu (KO'ed by Kadabra)**  
**Raichu**

Demitri remained stoic all the while and slowly pointed forward, Porygon narrowing its gaze. "Start with a Psybeam."

The Normal-type obeyed, firing off a large beam of rainbow energy towards Raichu, who grinned and quickly hopped to the side. Demitri furrowed his brow as Porygon fired several more blasts, all of which were expertly dodged by Raichu beore the Electric-type deflected one of the attacks with a flick of its tail. The mouse grinned, its body beginning to spark as Surge grinned. "Hit 'em with a Thunder Wave!"

Raichu gave off a loud roar before firing off a blast of lightning, causing Porygon's eyes to widen before it dodged, buzzing in shock as several more frantic blasts whizzed by it rather closely. Demitri furrowed his brow and bit his lower lip, able to feel the hair on the back of his neck now standing on end. "Even from this distance..."

Taking notice of Demitri's thoughtful expression, Surge gave off a hearty laugh and pointed forward, commanding, "Take it in close, Raichu! Quick Attack!"

The Electric-type obeyed, getting down on all fours and rocketing towards Porygon, who looked up with a beep. "Porygon, Sharpen!"

Surge's grin faded ever so slightly as Porygon's formerly blunt edges became much longer and pointed, forcing both combatants to lean to the side ever so slowly to prevent a full-on impalement. Despite this, Raichu didn't go without getting a scratch on its cheek, skidding to a halt and slowly looking around as a spot of red appeared on the wound. "Hmm..."

Demitri tensed up slightly from the close call, Surge scratching his chin with a small grin. "Well, that was awfully close...something like that can't help but make you think, eh...? That could've ended a bit gruesomely; fortunately, or maybe unfortunately for you, my Pokemon have served alongside me in the war, so they're capable of getting out of such danger!"

Raichu slowly licked at the wound that had formed and grinned slightly, Anne slowly glancing at Ranoku with an exasperated expression. "...what war?"

"It's complicated, just keep watching," Ranoku replied as-a-matter-of-factly, sipping from his drink.

Demitri continued to eye Porygon with a serious expression as the Virtual Pokemon glanced at Raichu, the action having seemingly grinded to a standstill to make way for the new conversation. "It's a little weird, no one really thinks about entrusting tykes like you with the responsibility of caring for something like a Pokemon, eh...? Guess it just goes to show how impressive our new generation can be!"

Raichu slowly began to get back down on all fours, its body sparking again as its jagged tail lifting up, the light of the Gym seemingly relecting off of the blade-like extension that Demitri only now seemed to really think about. "Aahh, but I'm sure you didn't come here for a talk about that sort of thing, you're here for a Gym battle, eh?"

A few moments passed as Demitri closed his eyes, giving a slight sigh. "...you're right, I did come here for a battle...but you did come up with a pretty good point, really. Creatures with such fantastical powers compared to us...admittedly non-impressive humans, especially in the care of children."

Porygon turned around to face Raichu completely, adopting a serious expression as Demitri tilted his head to one side, opening his eyes only partially with a seemingly bored expression. "It seems irresponsible, even if nothing too bad has happened from a pre-teen getting a pet that could breathe fire, or move things solely with its thoughts, or freeze things solid...I'd say that's a good show of trust there."

Surge smiled once more with a small nod, Demitri shifting about his glasses once more and finishing, "Such as that...I trust Porygon can win this battle."

"That's some pretty tall talk, toothpick..." Surge murmured, pointing forward. "Let's see how well you can back it up! Shock Wave!"

Raichu promptly fired a large blast of lightning from its tail, the blast homing in on Porygon, who looked up with a small beep. "Don't worry...take the attack," Demitri murmured, closing his eyes. Porygon seemed to loosen up slightly as the attack impacted with a loud crackle, sending a few stray bolts of lightning flying from the impact zone as Porygon tensed up, buzzing loudly all the while. Ranoku and Anne both blinked as Demitri narrowed his gaze, then said, "Conversion 2."

Porygon's eyes snapped open as its body began to glow, promptly dispersing the lightning attack as its body shimmered, taking on a slight yellowish tinge and sparking slightly. Surge furrowed his brow in thought and smirked slightly, murmuring, "Changing your type so that my Electric attacks won't have as much effect, eh...? Crafty, but there's still the matter of your Pokemon having taken quite a bit of damage being hit by Shock Wave head-on!"

"I wouldn't be so quick to worry," Demitri replied, motioning forth once more. "Porygon, Psybeam once more!"

The Normal-type resumed its repeated blasting, all of which Raichu avoided, despite the increased speed at which Porygon was firing, which now forced the Mouse Pokemon to run in a few circles, now having several more close calls with its dodging. Surge began to grin a bit more and clenched both fists, murmuring, "Good, good, that's the spirit...Double Team, now!"

Suddenly, Raichu leaped into the air, summoning several clones of itself which quicklky formed in a circle around Porygon, forcing it to stop its attacks and glance all around. "Raichu, Thunder Wave!"

All of the mouse clones fired off a large blast of lightning towards Porygon, who looked all around with a shocked expression and panicked buzz. "Simply being an Electric-type won't make him immune to paralysis...Porygon, up!"

Porygon quickly levitated over the attack, which generated an explosion of lightning energy below that catapulted Porygon into the air. All of the clones leaped up after Porygon, who whirled around after them with a buzz, just in time to pick out the real Raichu spinning around, its now sparking tail twirling around it. "Smack it down!"

"Psybeam, quickly!" Demitri shouted. Porygon narrowed its gaze and firted off an attack right as Raichu came into striking distance, both impacting with a loud crashing and explosion noise, smoke shrouding where the electrified tail and psychic blast impacted. Demitri and Surge both watched the cloud in apprehension before both began to drop, though Raichu managed to right itself and lande don its feet, though not without a small stagger and heavy blink.

Porygon, on the other hand, clattered to the ground rather loudly and unceremoniously, Demitri blinking as it attempted to slowly sit up, buzzing gently with a quiver and twitch. "Seems your little buddy's about out of steam..." Surge mused, folding his arms. "You gonna throw in the towel just yet?"

Demitri fell silent, slowly glancing down at Porygon as it weakly glanced back at him, giving off a defiant expression and buzz. "...no," Demitri replied, glancing back up at Surge with a serious expression. "This battle isn't over yet."

Surge began to grin once more, chuckling lightly. "Heh...you still surprise me this late into the battle, toothpick..."

"We're not even finished yet," Demitri replied, slowly shifting the glasses on his face once more. "Recover."

Suddenly, a light began to gather around Porygon's body, causing everyone to blink as the Normal-type levitated upwards, its formerly battered expression beginning to mend itself and its serious expression intensifying. Surge paused before grinning once more, chuckling. "Hmhmhm...backup plan, eh...? Next time you try that though, I won't be so gracious and give you enough time to return to full strength..."

"There won't be a next time," Demitri replied, him and Porygon narrowing their gazes. "We're going to finish this battle now."

Surge only grinned wider, glancing at Raichu and pointing forth. "I like your guts, toothpick! Raichu, give 'em another dose of Shock Wave!"

The Electric-type's body began to spark rather noticeably; however, as opposed to before, it now seemed considerably less controlled and refined, several bolts streaking off of its body and causing Surge to blink in surprise. "Raichu? Respond, soldier!"

The Mouse Pokemon only responded with a gargled groan; as it was facing away from its master, Surge was unable to notice its now groggy and uneasy expression. Demitri and the others, however, did, causing Anne to grin rather widely. "That Psybeam confused it!"

Surge's eyes widened from this comment as Raichu gave off a roar, promptly releasing its Shock Wave in a considerably less controlled manner, several lightning bolts smashing the ground and walls and forcing Porygon and even Demitri to lithely avoid some of the streaks. "Demitri, I suggest you finish this battle before we all get fried," Ranoku remarked, one of the blasts promptly slicing apart his drink can and causing him to stare at it rather blankly as the rest spilled out over him.

Demitri nodded and glanced at the now twitching Raichu, shifting his glasses about. "Porygon, finish it off with Psybeam."

The Virtual Pokemon obeyed, its now pointed snout beginning to glow rather brightly as Surge's eyes widened. The now noticeably more concentrated blast pierced right into Raichu with a loud crash, the Electric-type flying backwards and slowly skidding to a halt on its back. The lightning bolts promptly vanished as Raichu fell unconscious, now going limp. "It seems like...Raichu's unconscious now," Ranoku remarked, fishing another can out of his satchel and snapping it open. "All that haywire zapping weakened it to the point that all it took was a single strike from Porygon to finish it off."

Surge fell silent once more and began to smile, chuckling lightly and returning Raichu to its Ball as Demitri approached Porygon, who gave off a victorious beep and began bouncing around in the air. "Heh...seems like you truly are a strong Trainer...I'd say you've definitely earned this victory."

With this comment, Surge pulled forth the small, sun-shaped badge from his pocket and placed it in Demitri's hand, nodding slowly. "Thank you," Demitri said with a small nod, him and Surge bowing towards each other.

"The closest Gym now would be in Saffron, but seeing as how that place is on lockdown..." Surge mused, rubbing the back of his head while Ranoku and Anne approached.

"Do you at least know why?" Anne asked, tilting her head to one side.

Surge slowly closed his eyes and looked down, giving a slight sigh. "For now, it's...probably best that you skip it for now, it's official League business."

Demitri and Ranoku slowly exchanged a glance, pausing before nodding slowly. Anne heaved a rather heavy sigh and hung her head, groaning, "Wonderful...now where do we go to next?"

Ranoku, on the other hand, began to grin and turn around, leading the duo out. "Don't worry...I've got a plan of action."

Once the trio had stepped out, Ranoku reached into his satchel and pulled forth a map, sliding it open. "We want to head to Celadon City, right here..."

The teen motioned towards a town located to the west of Saffron, causing Demitri to blink. "Is there an underground path leading there too...?"

Ranoku nodded slowly, Anne glancing at Demitri rather oddly. "How did you know about-"

"It's not located here in Vermillion, though," Ranoku continued, causing Anne to groan in irritation and cast him a glare. The teen moved his finger to the east of Saffron, towards another city located directly across from Celadon. "It's right here, next to Lavender Town...there's no Gym there, but...it's the only way we'll get to Celadon with Saffron being on lockdown."

Demitri and Anne glanced at each other before nodding slowly, turning back to Ranoku as he snapped his map together. "First, we need to regroup back at Cerulean. Let's get moving, you two!"


	36. Rock Tunnel

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 36-Rock Tunnel

"...I've got a question."

"Shoot."

"WHY are we walking everywhere when we can do this again?"

Anne folded her arms with a slight huff after this question, leaning from behind Demitri to look at Ranoku, who currently sat at the base of Salamence's neck. The foursome were currently suspended high in the air on the Dragon-type's back, currently leading them high above the roads they would otherwise be traversing. Demitri sighed lightly and shook his head, mumbling, "Even I know the answer to this..."

"Because then it would be too easy," Ranoku replied, taking a sip from his drink. "Flying everywhere, you'd miss the opportunity to train and catch new Pokemon."

The little girl began to frown slightly and sighed, hanging her head as Demitri leaned back to glance at her. "Knew it."

"Tch, alright, alright..." the girl mumbled with a pout, narrowing her gaze. "Then why ARE we flying if you want us to walk everywhere anyway?"

Ranoku began to smile slightly and crushed his now empty can in his hand. "'Cause it takes too long heading back to Cerulean. Wanna make good time."

A vein popped from Anne's head and she gave off a slight groan, hanging her head as Demitri looked down, furrowing his brow. "So basically, we're only going to fly if it involves skipping over places we've been before."

"Pretty much!" Ranoku remarked cheerily, reaching into his satchel and pulling forth another can, snapping it open. Before he could take a sip, however, he suddenly gave off a small gag and leaned bag, using his other hand to grab at his neck, giving a cough and grunt. "Gack!"

Demitri and Anne both looked up in surprise, watching as Ranoku tossed about, gagging and grunting. "What happened?" Anne asked in alarm, leaning forth with a cocnerned expression.

"Probably swallowed a bug," Demitri mumbled blankly, rubbing his eyes with a sigh. "Dumbass...shouldn't open his mouth that wide."

Ranoku continued to toss about with a gag and cough, Anne inching forth and grasping her arms around his waist, attempting to force whatever was causing him to cough out. "C'mon! Get it out!"

Demitri retained a stoic expression as the repeated squirms caused the duo to lose their balance, beginning to fall off the side of Salamence's back with a loud yelp. Demitri's unimpressed expression turned into surprise as he looked over the side, just in time to notice Salamence glance at the duo from the side of its eye, winding back its claw to snag Ranoku by the collar of his shirt, leaving the teen and Anne now dangling from below through the air, the girl clinging to his waist. "...morons."

A few more coughs and Ranoku cleared his throat, groaning and letting his tongue hang out. "Bleh...don't worry, I swallowed it."

"Ew," Anne mumbled blankly, looking down at the ground with the same unusually serious expression. "...now, can we please GET BACK DOWN SO WE DON'T GO SPLAT?"

"Alright, alright," Ranoku mumbled blankly, waving a hand about. "Salamence, take us in, we're at Cerulean anyway."

The Dragon-type obeyed and began to dive back down towards the ground, soon coming close enough that Anne and Ranoku were able to touch the ground, both dettaching and staggering to a halt while Salamence landed. Once it had come down, Demitri slid off with a stretch and grunt, closing his eyes and sighing. "Alright, we're here, now..."

"We go east," Ranoku replied, returning Salamence to its Ball and turning in the direction specified. "We need to arrive at Rock Tunnel, and from there, we go south into Lavender Town."

Demitri and Anne exchanged a glance and began to walk after Ranoku. It didn't take very long at all for the formerly uniform road to become considerably more uneven and rocky, the rock walls of a canyon making themselves known to the trio. "R-Rock...Tunnel...?" Anne echoed, giving a slight gulp and shiver. "Isn't it that one cave..."

"Darker than your average cave," Ranoku replied, glancing at Anne as the girl's eyes widened, a noticeably anxious expression overtaking her. "Unlike Mt. Moon, which sees a bit of exploration and excavation, Rock Tunnel is almost entirely untouched. People are working on fixing that, but until then..."

Anne meeped nervously and quivered, wincing and looking up at Ranoku slightly. "I g-guess...w-we can't fly over that, h-huh..."

"Nope!" the teen replied, hopping up a nearby outcropping and glancing at Demitri and Anne. "Now c'mon, pick up the slack you two! We wanna make it to Rock Tunnel before nighttime! I prepared for that on the schedule anyway, but it's interchangeable!"

Demitri grumbled lightly as he clambered up as well, noticeably slower. Anne hopped up as well and sighed, hanging her head in irritation. "He just has to make everything so much harder..."

"Hey, he's your teacher..." Demitri grumbled, panting and flopping onto the outcropping, standing back up with a groan.

"He's your teacher too now, ya know," Anne replied, glancing at Demitri with a slight frown. "If you don't wanna put up with him, then make like a banana and split!"

The teen glanced back at her with an annoyed expression, beginning to follow along the path Ranoku had left, Anne following after him. The duo looked up; Ranoku had gotten fairly far ahead of them, seemingly not noticing that they were lagging behind. "I don't have too much of a choice, I don't know my way around Kanto as well, and I'd rather not waste time being lost."

Anne folded her arms with a bit of a sigh and rolled her eyes, beginning to walk ahead of Demitri, nose in the air. "Hmph, you're sounding awfully incompetent right now..."

"What's your excuse?" Demitri suddenly asked, causing Anne to freeze in place, Demitri unable to see her suddenly blank expression. The teen approached her from behind, looking down at the top of her head with a serious gaze. "You're making yourself sound very competent, so why stick around with someone as infuriating as Ranoku?"

A few moments passed in silence, both remaining silent until Demitri closed his eyes, beginning to walk past Anne, back on the path. He began to climb up a nearby rock obstructing the path, mumbling lightly, "Thought as much. You're either not as confident as you say you are, or-"

"It's a very personal reason, jerkface," Anne suddenly remarked rather sharply, beginning to clamber onto the rock next to Demitri. The teen glanced at her, the two exchanging a moment of serious contemplation. "You wouldn't be able to appreciate it."

Demitri opened his mouth to speak, however, Anne promptly ignored him and began to clamber up the rock, leaving Demitri to look after her. Rather than argue the situation, he simply sighed and began to climb up after her, mumbling flatly, "Hmph...whatever..."

Further up ahead, Ranoku continued to walk, currently with his head buried in a magazine, humming to himself. Despite seemingly not paying attention to where he was headed, Ranoku expertly hopped over each crevice and onto each rock, as if he had memorized the path. "Hm?"

The teen came to a halt upon turning to the next page in his magazine, furrowing his brow in thoughtfulness. On the page was an image of four figures; a red-haired woman in glasses, a tall, dark-skinned, muscular man, a shorter, older woman in a purple dress, and a red-haired man in a black jumpsuit, a cape drooped over his shoulders. The top of the article read "Elite Four in Indigo League"; seemingly entranced by the contents of the page, Ranoku stopped his walking and leaned against a rock, not noticing Demitri and Anne beginning to approach, panting heavily.

"Gah...there you are..." the girl panted, finally staggering in front of Ranoku in annoyance. "Why'd you leave us there like that?"

She wound up a fist in preparation to smack Ranoku, however, the teen moved away from the rock, leaving Anne to swipe at nothing but thin air and topple onto her front with a dull thud. "Interesting..."

Demitri looked up with a faint pant and began to approach Ranoku, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. "You know, I never pegged you as the type to actually read..."

"Gotta keep up on what's going on somehow," Ranoku replied as-a-matter-of-factly, turning to Demitri. "In fact...this little tidbit happened to catch my attention."

The teen twirled his magazine around and showed off the article to Demitri, who leaned forth and shifted about his glasses to get a better look at it. "The Elite Four...? I've heard my parents mention them before..."

"Supposedly four of the most powerful Trainers in Kanto," Ranoku explained, twisting the magazine back to him and smacking it with the back of his fingers. "Awfully famous for their skill and power..."

Anne gave off a small cough and began to sit up, brushing some of the dirt off of her and looking up. "Doesn't...every major region have an Elite Four...?"

Ranoku nodded and glanced back at her, beginning to grin slightly. "Yup...and according to this article, this year's Indigo League is going to feature the Kanto Elite Four competing. The different Leagues sometimes feature that region's Elite Four amongst the ranks...fortunate for us that they happened to choose this one, mm?"

"How is that fortunate?" Demitri asked, raising an eyebrow. "If they're that good, then it decreases our chances of winning by quite a bit, methinks..."

This was met with a knowing chuckle from Ranoku, who moved a finger in Demitri's face and waggled it about. "Silly Demitri, being able to compete along the Elite Four is good enough! Besides, what have I said about-"

"Just a title, yeah, yeah, I know," Demitri mumbled, waving a hand about to try and move Ranoku's finger away from him. "Forget I asked."

"Forgetting!" Ranoku remarked, twisting around on one of his heels. "Now come on, we need to get moving!"

"Can't we rest for two minutes?" Anne groaned in annoyance, a vein popping from her head. "This place is hard to maneuver, we're gonna run ourselves ragged!"

Ranoku turned back to Anne once more, folding his arms with a sigh. "Anne, please, we need to hurry up, the afternoon's coming along fairly-"

The teen didn't get to finish his comment as a rather loud, rhythmic beeping noise that caused everyone to look at Ranoku. He quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, yellow, oval-shaped device, a black clip on the back and a blinking blue light on the front. "A Pokenav...?" Demitri mumbled blankly, blinking. "That's a model all the way from Hoenn..."

Ranoku flipped open the upper half of the device, peering into the glowing screen. His formerly dopey expression immediately turned into seriousness, which went far from unnoticed by Demitri and Anne. "...I've gotta take this. Go ahead and rest up, we're almost out of the canyon."

The older of the two pupils went to speak up, however, Ranoku had hopped behind a nearby rock before he could say anything, leaving Anne and Demitri by themselves, an awkward silence reigning in the area. "...what do you think that was all about?" Demitri murmured, glancing at the shorter girl with an exasperated expression.

Anne only shrugged with a sigh, while Ranoku continued to squirm his way into an out-of-the-way hiding place, pressing a few buttons and placing the device to his ear. "Hello?"

"Ranoku. I assume you've seen the article in today's issue of Pokemon Insider, yes?"

The voice prompted Ranoku to look down at the folded up magazine in his grasp, and he slowly nodded. "Yeah...about the Elite Four?"

"We're having a meeting to discuss this turn of events...because you're more restricted in your travel methods for...obvious reasons, and based off of your current location, we've decided to hold it in the abandoned Power Plant down the river in Route 10. Think you can make it?"

Ranoku pursed his lips and slowly glanced in the direction of Demitri and Anne, the duo currently taking the time to rest up; the former was drinking from a water bottle, while the latter was currently using a feather duster to brush the dirt from her outfit. "...yeah, I think I can make it."

"Good. We're expecting you in an hour." With this comment, the voice abruptly cut off, leaving Ranoku to pull the Pokenav from his ear, staring at the now blank screen before flipping it closed and sliding it back in his satchel.

The teen stepped back into the clearing Demitri and Anne had been waiting in, both looking up at him as he approached. "There you are," the former mumbled, standing up and wiping his mouth of excess water. "What was that about?"

"Nothing," Ranoku replied rather bluntly, turning towards the pathway they were progressing along. "Schedule just encountered a little change. We need to get moving, NOW."

Anne stowed her feather duster back into her satchel, looking up at Ranoku with a raised eyebrow. "What? Why?"

"Doesn't concern you," Ranoku replied, now reaching into his satchel. "Now since we won't be able to make it in the time I'm looking at, we're going to fly again."

Demitri raised an eyebrow once more and stood up, beginning to approach Ranoku cautiously. "What happened to not-"

The teen didn't get to finish his question when Salamence was unleashed, the dragon snatching the unprepared Demitri and Anne up, Ranoku hopping onto its back as the creature shot through the air. "Hmmm..."

On a much higher portion of the cliff overlooking the canyon, the familiar, dark-haired figure of Ilohe lowered the pair of binoculars she was using to peer on the trio, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. "They're certainly leaving in a hurry..."

"See, if they can fly everywhere, why don't they just do that as opposed to walking everywhere?" This question came from Zack and Hayden behind her, the teen glancing back at them with an unimpressed expression.

"Ranoku's a real stickler for working hard, so he only resorts to flying when he has to get somewhere in a hurry, or in an emergency," Ilohe explained, glancing back at Zack and Hayden with a serious expression. "Which means something is up...and I have a feeling I know what it involves..."

The teen turned back towards the canyon, her gaze trailing to the satchel she had set on the rock in front of her; a copy of the exact same magazine Ranoku had been looking through rested in front of her, on the exact same article that had caught Ranoku's attention. "And if that's the case..." Ilohe began to smirk rather widely. "...then I think I know where he'll be."


	37. The Royal Five

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 37-The Royal Five

A loud screeching emanated from above as Salamence began arriving at their destination; the front of a rather intimidating-looking cave with an inky black interior. A familiar, Poke Ball emblazoned building was positioned at the front; it was here that Salamence landed, and Ranoku ushered Demitri and Anne off. "You guys go rest up and collect supplies, I'll be right back."

"Now hold on a minute," Demitri grunted, glancing at the teen with a narrowed gaze. "Where the hell are you going anyway?"

"None of your business," Ranoku responded, Salamence taking off into the air once more. "I'll be back in around an hour! Don't follow me."

With this final comment, the dragon took off once more, leaving Demitri and Anne to stare off after them helplessly. "...whelp, we'd better get our supplies," Anne said, clasping her hands together and preparing to walk in. As she prepared to do that, however, Demitri turned around, frowning.

"Hey hey hey, wait a minute," he retorted, beginning to follow her inside. "Aren't you the least bit curious about what he's doing?"

Anne cast her fellow student an annoyed glare. "Well DUH, but it's not like we can really do anything about it."

"I have a flying Pokemon too, you know," Demitri replied flatly, causing Anne to narrow her gaze.

"He told us not to follow him!" she grunted back, stomping a foot on the ground. "We can't disobey him!"

Demitri turned away at this, narrowing his gaze. "You can't...but I can."

The teen prepared to walk out at this, however, Anne quickly slid in his way with a narrowed gaze, spreading her arms out defensively. Demitri stared down at her in exasperation, then heaved a heavy sigh. "...what is your problem? Why are you SO adamant about following his lopsided instructions, turning a blind eye towards his suspicious behavior, and putting up with his idiotic tendencies? I can tell you're more mature than that, so why?"

Anne narrowed her gaze with a small growl, clenching her fists before lowering them, quivering slightly. "...it's...a personal reason...like I said before, something you'd never be able to understand." She pointed a finger threateningly towards Demitri, and snapped, "Just know that if you ever try and fight against him, you'll have to go through me first!"

The duo exchanged a lengthy staring contest, Demitri's cool, collected gaze matching with Anne's furious, annoyed one. The former finally closed his eyes with a sigh and turned around, muttering, "Fine...just be warned, he may seem weird now...but you'll never know, he could be hiding something that would make even you have second thoughts."

"I doubt that," Anne retorted, the duo beginning to stroll to the front counter.

Back outside, Ranoku had continued to fly across the mountain, swerving off to the side slightly while tilting his gaze all over the place, narrowing his eyes with a small hum. He finally managed to locate a river streaking through the mountain; he grinned slightly and dove Salamence towards it, floating over the surface and causing the water surface to part slightly from the velocity. "Where...is it...?"

Ranoku's gaze was finally torn towards a part of the river nearby that curved to the side, which he began to follow before twisting towards it, turning around. He blinked with a surprised expression, murmuring, "There it is..."

The river twisted around and now circled around a part of the ground jutting off from the side of the cave, enabling just enough room for a gigantic, run-down building to be erected. Several abandoned generators and power lines lay around, having long since sputtered out from disuse. Windows were cracked, metal was rusted, and bits of wall were knocked over. A sign reading "Kanto Power Plant" was erected near the front, slightly cracked and rusted so that the rest of it was almost completely illegible. Salamence landed on the ground in the entrance, Ranoku quickly returning the dragon to its Poke Ball and strolling inside.

The interior looked just as bad as the outside; the formerly tiled floor was cracked and uneven, bits of the tiles scattered everywhere and enabling the concerete foundation to be seen underneath. Wires and metal beams hung from the ceiling, and dusty, broken machines were scattered here and there. Ranoku would occasionally tilt his head to the sides, watching as some electrical Pokemon occasionally passed by or dove to the sides to hide from him. "Of course he'd choose a meeting place like this..."

A small smirk formed on Ranoku's face as he wandered the halls, occasionally glancing around and biting his lower lip, a part of him beginning to worry he had gotten lost. He didn't get to think this for too long as a faint, dull buzzing was heard, prompting Ranoku to turn to the source.

A large, metallic, disc-shaped Pokemon now levitated above him; it was covered in silvery metal with a large, central eye. Two smaller orbs were welded to its sides, each one with an eye emblazoned on the front, a magnet attached to the bottom, and a screw sticking out of the top. Ranoku stared up at it for a moment before the disc-like Pokemon turned around, waving a magnet for Ranoku to follow. The teen pursued his apparent aid through the ruined building, weaving through the hallways before arriving in an opening that was considerably lighter than the rest of the dim passages. Ranoku managed to squeeze his way inside, looking up.

He was now in a much larger, wide-open room with a few machines scattered here and there, amongst them a much larger generator. The roof of this room seemed to have been blown apart completely, enabling the orange-colored sky and sunlight to pour in, explaining its brighter lighting. The disc-like Pokemon levitated into the middle of the room, giving off a buzz. "Aahh, there you are, Ranoku. I was worried you were going to get lost, so I sent Magnezone to find you."

"I'm not sure if I should be thankful, or insulted," the teen mumbled, rubbing the back of his head with a frown. "...but thanks anyway."

"No problem," the voice replied, now stepping out of the dark portion of the room; it was a young man with long, dishevelled dark green hair, and a black dress shirt and slacks. He looked up with a small smile, lifting his hand. "Role call, everyone. Ranoku Taikin?"

"Here," the teen replied, looking around slightly.

"Ameela Staunt?"

At this, another person stepped out of the darkness; a teenage girl with pink hair tied into two ponytails drooping over her shoulders, wearing a white jacket and skirt, and a pink top. "Here," she replied in a cheery tone, smiling.

The green-haired boy nodded. "Ahone Asper?"

"Here," replied a rather bored-sounding female, who stepped out; she had long blonde hair and wore a black top and slacks.

"Cuzenu Rynver?" the boy remarked, which only caused the trio currently gathered there to glance at him. "...oh wait, that's me, isn't it?"

"Yes," Ahone replied with a roll of her eyes, Ameela snickering to herself.

"Yes, well, right," he murmured, clearing his throat. "And, last but not least...Yuusha Douniiru."

A faint thud was heard at this and another figure stepped forth; easily a head or two taller than the rest of the group, a heavily built man with a green camouflage cest and jeans, a head of unkempt blond hair resting upon it. "I'm here," he replied, earning a nod from Cuzenu.

"Good, good," Cuzenu murmured, turning around and closing his eyes. "Then let the meeting of the Royal Five begin."

**-Meanwhile-**

"Lantern...check. Map...check. Antidotes...check. Extra fuel...check. First aid kit...check. Irresponsible mentor..."

Demitri looked up, earning nothing but an annoyed glare from Anne. "...not check. Of course."

"He said he'd be back in an hour," Anne retorted with a pout. "It's only been like, what, ten minutes?"

"It's been fourty-five," Demitri replied bluntly, closing his eyes with a sigh. "What, has Ranoku not been bothering to teach you how to tell time?"

"I do to!" Anne retorted, hopping to her feet with a frown. "He's been teaching me lots of things!"

"Are any of those things applicable in a situation that doesn't involve Pokemon?" Demitri asked.

Anne opened her mouth to give a response, however, she seemed to freeze up, looking down and pursing her lips. "...I...ah..."

"Thought as much," Demitri mumbled, closing his eyes; this only caused Anne to frown and stomp a foot on the ground.

"What does that matter, anyway? It's not like you'd be able to do anything important around here that DOESN'T involve Pokemon!"

Demitri paused and glanced back up, furrowing his brow with a light sigh. "...not exactly my point."

"Then what IS your point? Huh?" Anne replied sharply, leaning forth and setting her hands on her hips.

Before Demitri could offer a response, a familiar, smooth female voice piped up. "I wouldn't worry too much tyke, he's just talking to hear himself talk."

Anne immediately bristled and whirled around with a frown; as expected, Ilohe stood nearby, arms folded and leaning against a wall, grinning. Zack and Hayden sat nearby, the former casting Demitri a narrowed gaze. "Tch, while that's probably true..."

"What are you doing here?" Demitri asked, standing up with a frown. "I thought I said the answer was no, and Ranoku isn't around for you to torment." Demitri's gaze trailed to Zack. "I'm guessing you're here for a battle then?"

"Wrong this time," Zack replied, sighing and rolling his eyes. Ilohe began to approach, chuckling slightly.

"Oh don't worry, I'm not here to torture you two, and I already know Ranoku isn't around," she replied, beginning to grin maliciously and prompting Demitri and Anne to exchange a glance.

"Then...what exactly are you doing here?" Anne asked, folding her arms.

Ilohe chuckled again, bending down to the shorter girl and beginning to grin even wider. "Well...you both know where he went off to, right?"

"Not a clue," Demitri replied, narrowing his gaze. "Implying that you actually do?"

_"So he didn't tell them...how priceless._" "I do, actually," she replied, chuckling and standing up to face Demitri. "It's a little sad he never told you..."

This piqued Demitri's interest immediately, and he stood up, narrowing his gaze. "Never told us what...?"

Anne, however, narrowed her gaze and stepped forth with a frown. "Tch, you're lying! Ranoku'd never hide anything from me!"

"Oh really?" Ilohe asked, snickering to herself and looking down at her. "Maybe you'd like for me to actually SHOW you?"

Anne seemed to recoil slightly, frowning and stepping forth. "This is some dirty trick! You're just going to pull something out when we've got our guard down!"

Ilohe, on the other hand, waved her hands about in a defensive manner. "Oh, no, I wouldn't do that...at least, not in this situation. After all, me being honest at this point is what's going to ruin Ranoku. And that's what I'm after."

The teenage girl chuckled once more and closed her eyes, Demitri and Anne exchanging a glance. "...I want to know what he's hiding," Demitri mumbled, narrowing his gaze.

"Well I don't, now that you put it like that!" Anne retorted, though her voice had a noticeable quiver in it that showed she was losing her confidence. "And I'm not about to let you have your way like that!" She glanced at Demitri, and growled, "And you shouldn't either!"

"Why? Ranoku's little rivalry means nothing to me," Demitri replied, glancing at Anne with a frown. "I mentioned it before, I'm here because he knows his way around Kanto, not because I'm his buddy, or yours."

Anne blinked with a shocked expression, quivering with a small grunt. "That...that's selfish! He's your teacher! Isn't there some sort of, like, special relationship related to THAT?"

"I accepted the offer to be his student because I thought he was competent," Demitri replied, folding his arms. "He's a decent Trainer, I'll give him that, but nothing else."

Anne could only stare back at Demitri with a blank expression; Ilohe, who had remained silent until now, broke into hysterical laughter. "Wow, you are COLD! I'm actually kind of relieved I don't have to put up with you!"

"Just show me where he is so I don't have to put up with you anymore," Demitri replied flatly, narrowing his gaze and stepping towards Ilohe.

The girl grinned again with a light chuckle and nodded, turning around. Demitri began to follow, leaving Anne, Zack, and Hayden glancing after them. "...gotta admit, I actually feel kinda bad for you," Zack mumbled, glancing at Anne.

"Shut it," she mumbled flatly, glaring at him before following, prompting Zack and Hayden to do the same.

**-Meanwhile-**

"...alright, so since we still can't come into agreement on team emblem, we'll save it for next meeting."

"Why are we even called the ROYAL Five, it's not like any of us have a lineage!"

Cuzenu glanced at the source of the annoyed comment, in this case ahone. "Incorrect, Yuusha and Ranoku do."

"You're just jelly," Ranoku replied smugly, causing Ahone to glance at him with a small blink.

"...I'm...what? Jelly?"

"You heard me, you're jelly."

A few awkward moments passed in silence before Ahone sighed and hung her head, mumbling flatly, "I'm not even going to pretend to know what you mean by that..."

"ANYWAY," Cuzenu cut in, clasping his hands together. "Onto our next topic of discussion...Ranoku."

All eyes turned towards Ranoku, who looked up, his grin fading. "Where is it?"

The teen heaved out a sigh, hanging his head and rubbing the back of his head. "I don't have it yet, but I'm trying my best."

"Tch, like hell you are," Ahone mumbled, rolling her eyes. "What is it you're SO busy with that you can't even do the assignment we gave you?"

"You know damn well what I'm doing," Ranoku replied, looking around the group. "I took on some students to pass on my-"

"Wait, when did it become 'students'?" Ameela asked, tilting her head to one side. "I thought you only had one?"

Ranoku looked up, blinking in surprise. "Oh, yeah, right, I took on a second pupil not too long ago. He's definitely a rebel, though, but it's a refreshing change of pace."

"Eh, well now, starting a little babysitting service, are ya Ranoku?" Yuusha asked, beginning to grin and chuckle. "I'd think about asking you to look into my son, but from what my wife's said, he's left for his journey a while ago. Not to mention, given his temper you two would NEVER get along."

A hearty laugh boomed from the large man and he tilted his head back, Ranoku chuckling lightly. "Eheh, well, if he's anything like my second student, I might have my work cut out for me..."

"More to the point," Cuzenu cut in, glancing at Ranoku. "We're getting a little tired of waiting, Ranoku. There may not be many other Trainers with as much skill as you do, but the rules clearly state-"

"Yes, yes, I know, I know," Ranoku mumbled with a sigh, waving his hand about. "Don't worry, I'll have it, just give me more time. I'll have it in time for the Indigo League and not a moment later. If I don't, then I accept full responsibility and any punishment."

"The only punishment is that you'll lose your position," Ahone snapped back, narrowing her gaze. "Remember that."

Ranoku bowed his head down, eyes drooping with a light sigh. "Anyway, I think that's about it," Cuzenu finished, clasping his hands together. "Our next meeting is at Seafoam Islands. I'll try and make it at a time acceptable for Ranoku's training schedule, got it?"

"Gotta change everything up to compensate for him..." Ahone mumbled, rolling her eyes and turning around. "If we're done here, I've got important issues to attend to."

Cuzenu nodded as the girl stepped out of sight, seemingly vanishing into the shadows in an instant. "Well, if that really is all, then I gotta go too!" Ameela remarked, stretching her arms up with a wide grin.

"Same here," Yuusha added with a nod. "Got training to catch up on and whatnot."

With this comment, both stepped into the shadows as well, vanishing from view and leaving Cuzenu and Ranoku alone. "You'd better be good on your word, Ranoku," the other murmured, beckoning his disc-shaped Pokemon forth and hopping onto it. "You're a good Trainer, and I'd hate to have to send you away."

Ranoku gave a solemn nod and turned away, not watching as Cuzenu shot off into the air on his Pokemon, leaving him alone to wander back through the ruined halls of the Power Plant.


	38. Through the Rock Tunnel

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 38-Through the Rock Tunnel

"I never knew this was around here..."

Ilohe smiled at Anne's comment as the group drifted along the river in between the canyon, currently riding on a large, spiky, purple, shell-like Pokemon, its pitch black insides only lit up by a pair of eyes peering out in a creased, annoyed fashion.

_Cloyster, the Bivalve Pokemon. The evolved form of Shellder. For protection, it uses its harder-than-diamonds shell. It also shoots spikes from the shell._

"Yeah, this place has become really hidden and out-of-the-way..." the older girl mused, glancing at the unimpressed Anne. "Especially after the Power Plant was shut down."

Demitri looked up slightly, shifting the glasses on his face slightly. "I remember...there used to be a Power Plant north of Lavender Town. It got shut down, I don't know why though..."

"Something involving malfunctions and stuff," Ilohe replied with a shrug, glancing at the group again. "It's since become a haven for Electric Pokemon, and its dilapidated state makes it quite dangerous."

"Of course, it makes sense now!" Anne remarked, quickly hopping to her feet and almost falling off of their craft, only steadied when Zack grabbed a hold of her shirt to keep her steady. "He must've went there to train in secret, and didn't want us to follow because we might get hurt!"

Demitri raised an eyebrow in curiosity, slowly glancing at her. "For some reason...that sounds like a crazy enough idea to actually have been sprouted by Ranoku."

Ilohe frowned slightly, sighing and shaking her head. "Tch...whether it is or not, that's not why Ranoku's over there."

"Then why is he? How would you even know anyway?" Anne snapped back, frowning.

The teenage girl's frown deepened and she turned around, the small stretch of land the Power Plant was set up on coming into view. "Because...what he's doing is quite important to me."

During this time, Ranoku had began strolling out of the entrance of the building, brushing some of the collected dust off of him. He looked up slightly upon hearing the small sound of gushing water from the approaching group, and quickly leaned behind the rusted sign to stay hidden. Ilohe and the others began drifting into view, stepping off onto the ground and causing Ranoku's eyes to shoot open. "What better reason could Ranoku even have for coming to a dump like this, anyway?" Anne asked with a frown, folding her arms.

"If you'd shut up for two seconds, I could tell you!" Ilohe snapped back, turning to the foursome in front of her. "He-"

"...is done!" The exclamation caused everyone to jump and turn around as Ranoku wheeled out of his hiding place, strolling forth and causing Anne to give off a relieved sigh and cheesy smile. "I told you I'd be right back."

"Those weren't your exact words, but whatever," Demitri mumbled, waving a hand about. "What were you doing out here anyway?"

Ranoku paused for a moment, looking over the group. "...what did you guys think I was doing?"

"Training," Anne replied quickly, shooting a contemptuous glare at Ilohe.

"Then that's what I was doing," Ranoku replied calmly, earning a glare and growl from Ilohe. "But I'm done now, so there's no reason for you to start prying into anything I'm doing."

Ilohe began to step forward at this, turning towards Demitri and the others and motioning forcefully towards Ranoku. "You're not honestly buying this drivel, are you?"

"I am," Anne replied quickly, setting her hands on her hips.

"So long as it doesn't consistently get in the way of our journey or put us in undesirable situations, I don't really care," Demitri mumbled, glancing at Ranoku with a serious expression.

"It won't, it won't," Ranoku replied calmly, lifting his hands up defensively. "Have some faith in me, why don't ya?"

Anne glanced at Demitri with a superior expression, tilting her head up with a grin. "Yeah, why don't ya?"

"Because your actions are questionable," the teen mumbled in response, rolling his eyes. "But I suppose if you promise not to let anything interfere..."

"You certainly ask a lot of stuff of me," Ranoku mused with a small chuckle, beginning to walk past Ilohe, who only glared back at him with a growl. "But, whatever, I like having a challenge. Now c'mon, let's head back to the Pokemon Center so we can rest up for our trek through Rock Tunnel."

Demitri and Anne nodded slightly while walking after Ranoku, with Ilohe, Zack, and Hayden glancing after them. "Tch..." Ilohe grunted lightly, shaking her head. "Forget them. C'mon you two, we should be able to make it through the tunnel before morning."

Zack and Hayden both blinked in surprise, the comment immediately causing Ranoku to freeze up, Demitri and Anne glancing after him. "Wait, we're going through Rock Tunnel right now?" the older boy asked, raising an eyebrow. "It's getting a little late..."

"Oh c'mon, it's nothing an experienced Trainer shouldn't be able to handle," Ilohe replied smartly, beginning to grin and fold her arms. "And if worse comes to worst, you've got me. We'll be fine."

Ranoku slowly glanced back at Ilohe slightly, a serious expression etched on his face. "Seriously...? The Rock Tunnel is already dark enough, but at night..."

"First of all, it's not nighttime yet," Ilohe replied with a frown, looking up at the still orange-tinted sky, though it was beginning to get noticeably darker. "Second of all, how would you know? I mean, you of all people should be experienced enough that such a thing shouldn't be an issue, huh?"

Ranoku turned around entirely to Ilohe at this, prompting Demitri and Anne to step towards him, the former wearing an annoyed expression. "Ranoku, DON'T. We talked about this back in Vermillion..."

"But she's indirectly challenging meeeeeeee," the older teen replied in a whining fashion, bouncing up and down with a wince and holding his fists close to his chest. "I can't take that lying down!"

Ilohe only snickered back while walking next to Ranoku, glancing at him out of the side of her eye. "First one to the end of Rock Tunnel wins...?"

"Got it!" Ranoku proclaimed rather loudly, pointing towards Ilohe dramatically. "Come on, you two!"

Salamence was released at this, Ranoku hopping on while Anne and Demitri followed a little slower. "Why do I even bother anymore...?" the latter sighed irrately.

Ilohe, Zack, and Hayden, on the other hand, clambered back on her Cloyster and began drifting back towards the river, Salamence flying overhead. "We need to set down some ground rules first, though, just so we're fair," Ranoku remarked, glancing down at Ilohe slightly.

"Of course. First off, no flying Pokemon," Ilohe replied, beginning to smile. "If you're as good as you claim you are, you won't need them."

"Understood," Ranoku replied; the two teams had, within no time at all, returned to the Pokemon Center, disembarking their respective Pokemon and beginning to approach the front entrance of the cave. "That aside, all other Pokemon are fair game to get out of a sticky situation..."

"But ONLY if you're in a sticky situation," Ilohe responded smugly, folding her arms as both teams came to a halt at the entrance. "We're all in understanding?"

"Of course," Ranoku replied, Demitri beginning to surrender the supplies they had gathered in his absence. "And now...we go!"

Without much more to be said, Ranoku began to charge inside, Anne and Demitri beginning to follow a little slower. Zack and Hayden prepared to follow, however, their shoulders were promptly grasped by Ilohe, who yanked them backwards. "Ah ah ah, where are you two going?"

Both slowly looked back at Ilohe with a curious expression, Zack managing to reply, "To...beat them to the end of Rock Tunnel...?"

"No you're not," Ilohe replied, beginning to smile and causing Zack and Hayden to glance at each other blankly. "You two need to learn that sometimes, you have to go around the rules if you want to win."

The comment caused Zack and Hayden to blink, eyes widening slightly. "You mean...cheat?" the latter asked, earning a nod from Ilohe. "But...isn't that bad?"

"Believe me, after all Ranoku's done to me, it justifies leaving him for DEAD," Ilohe snapped back, causing Zack to frown and step towards her.

"Wait, you're not actually going to KILL them, are you?" he asked, folding his arms. "The entire point of me having a rival is so I can have someone to compare to, killing them defeats the entire purpose!"

Ilohe's smile faded and she sighed, running a hand over her face. "Tch, fine...we'll just go and slow them down enough so that we can get far enough ahead that we'll make it to the next Gym before they do, got it?"

Zack slowly narrowed his gaze and unfolded his arms, turning slightly towards the entrance. "Mph...I guess...doesn't mean I agree with this..."

"Deal with it," Ilohe replied, promptly releasing her Gengar. She clambered onto it and pulled Zack and Hayden with her, leaving the trio to drift into the air through the cavern.

**-Meanwhile-**

Inside, the cave was even darker than it was in Mt. Moon, something Demitri didn't think would even be possible. The lantern they were taking didn't offer much in the way of help, the darkness seemingly swallowing up the majority of the light that would normally be lighting their path. Anne stayed practically glued to Ranoku's leg the entire time, looking around with a frightened expression. "O-okay, I'm beginning to have second thoughts..." she mumbled shakily.

"We can't go back now," Ranoku replied, keeping his gaze focused ahead. "We're in this, we're not stopping 'til we're done."

"We wouldn't need to if you'd just keep your damn pride in check," Demitri mumbled, glancing at his mentor out of the side of his eye. "It's not like beating her is SO important."

Ranoku gave off a small sigh at this, shaking his head slightly while avoiding a nearby boulder. "Meh, you wouldn't understand..."

"Right, sure I wouldn't. Because that's your go-to argument," Demitri mumbled, shooting an annoyed glare at Anne.

"Just quit your bellyaching and come on," Ranoku piped up, now adopting a slightly scolding tone. "We need to focus on getting through this place in one piece."

Anne slowly looked up at this, giving a shaky gulp and frown. "I'm not concerned about us getting hurt...I'm concerned about us getting lost!"

"Relax," Ranoku replied as-a-matter-of-factly, waving his hand about. "If we get lost, I'll just get Salamence to-"

"Go against the rules YOU laid out for us?" Demitri asked bluntly, causing Ranoku to pause for a moment, now deep in thought. "Besides, who's to say Ilohe is going to follow the rules anyway? She's already proven she's not above underhanded tricks to get what she wants."

Ranoku slowly glanced back at Demitri, giving off a lazy smile and waving a hand about. "Bah, we can take it, we're better than they are. Now stop complaining and let's get a-"

The teen was interrupted by a rather loud rumbling that caused the trio to freeze, quickly looking around. "Wh-what was that?" Anne squeaked in panic, followed by a boulder smashing into the ground next to them. "KYAGH?"

Demitri quickly glanced upwards as Ranoku lifted the lantern, revealing that several more rather large boulders were now streaking down towards them. "A rockslide? How in the..."

"This definitely counts as a sticky situation..." Demitri mumbled flatly, quickly pulling forth two Poke Balls and tossing them forth, unleashing Porygon and Kadabra in a brilliant flash of light. "Psybeam, now!"

Both Pokemon glanced up and began firing off a large hail of rainbow blasts, smashing into the boulders with a loud crash and causing much smaller bits of debris and dust to rain down upon them. Anne yelped once more and held her hands over her head protectively, the trio coughing slightly once the dust had settled. "What the heck was that just now...?"

"You two couldn't stop running your mouths, that's what happened," Ranoku replied condescendingly, earning a rather hateful glare from Demitri. "Now let's keep going, and keep the QQ to a minimum, got it?"

Demitri only responded with a sigh and grumble, bowing his head as the trio kept going, Porygon and Kadabra following along rather closely. Above, a pair of glowing red eyes was seen overlooking a now exposed ridge, Ilohe peering out as well and giving a frown. "The heck was that for?" Zack grunted from behind, giving her a shove in the back and prompting the teen to glance back at him with a frown.

"You heard them," Ilohe replied flatly, narrowing her gaze. "Simply skipping ahead would be easy...but significantly delaying them here in Rock Tunnel would give us all of the room in the world to get Badges while they're wasting their time here!"

"But...isn't that kind of dangerous?" Hayden asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Not to mention it takes away the entire purpose of me having a rival at all," Zack replied sharply, narrowing his gaze. "What good is it if I'm too far ahead for it to matter?"

"There are plenty more fish in the sea, kid," Ilohe replied bluntly, beginning to board her Gengar once more. "Now come on, we've got to keep going or else they'll get too far ahead."

Zack, however, instead folded his arms and planted his feet firmly on the ground, glancing away. "I don't think so. This is going a little too far, they could've gotten killed!"

With this comment, the boy sat down rather forcefully on a nearby boulder, earning a confused glance from Hayden and an unimpressed stare from Ilohe. She finally shrugged and turned around, mumbling, "Whatever...have fun wandering in here with no help whatsoever."

This earned a small blink from Zack, who looked up as Gengar began lifting into the air. Hayden quickly glanced back at the boy and began to approach, an alarmed expression on his face. "Z-Zack, w-we can't..."

He slowly began to frown and groan, sighing and standing up. "Wait, wait..." Gengar stopped ascending as a wicked grin formed on Ilohe's face, the girl turning around slightly to glance at him. "We'll stick by you...for now..."

"Good," Ilohe mumbled, Gengar descending just enough for Zack and Hayden to climb on. "Now come on. We've got work to do."


	39. Playing by the Rules

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 39-Playing by the Rules

"Please tell me we're almost there..."

Ranoku shook his head slightly, keeping the now slightly dimmer lantern held up. "Hard to tell in here. It's so dark, can't see the sky..."

Demitri slowly looked back at the teen, ignoring the fact that Anne was still clinging tightly to him. "You don't have a watch or something...?"

"How would that help?" Ranoku asked, glancing back at the teen.

This earned an irate roll of the eyes from the other teen. "You've been here before. Using how long it took you to get through it the last time, and how long we've been in here now, we can come to a rough estimate of how much further we have yet to go by subtracting the amount of time we've been in here from how long it took you the last time."

A rather awkward silence followed, only interrupted by a slight dripping. Ranoku and Anne looked back at the teen blankly, the girl mumbling flatly, "What."

"I don't keep track of those things," Ranoku replied, waving a hand about dismissively. "Nice try, but you overestimated my ability."

"Clearly," Demitri mumbled with a slight growl, one of his eyes twitching. "This is why we shouldn't have accepted her stupid challenge. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you'd just quit-"

Ranoku finally came to a rather forceful stop, turning around towards Demitri with an annoyed expression. "You think I WANT to? You think I ENJOY having to put you both through this? You think I LIKE listening to you bitch about this? Have you ever stopped to consider that I HAVE to do this?"

"If you actually explained why, I wouldn't have to consider anything," Demitri replied flatly, him and Ranoku now standing nearly nose-to-nose. "If it's SO important, and has NOTHING to do with your pride, then kindly explain why we have to-"

"Alright that's it!" Anne practically screamed, eearning a glance from the two older teens. She looked between the both of them with a scolding expression, growling, "We are in the middle of a dark and creepy cave with few ways out and some psycho bi-"

"Anne."

"...Ilohe's after us! Now I want to GET OUT OF HERE, but you two obviously don't since you won't shut up and start actually getting off your butts and moving!"

A few moments passed, Demitri and Ranoku looking down at Anne before glancing back each other. "...fine. But only because we're in a situation here."

Ranoku nodded back and resumed the group's walking once more, slowly glancing upwards; a slightly curving path nearby revealed the aforementioned passage as being somewhat lighter. "Hmm...it's starting to come back to me now..."

Anne glanced back at Ranoku, her eyes sparkling and a wide grin forming over her face. "Yeah? Are we almost out?"

This earned a nod in confirmation from the older teen, who began leading them through the uneven and swerving passage. "Yeah...I remember, right near the exit is a big fissure we have to pass over..."

Anne blinked at this with a small gulp, her grip on Ranoku tightening all over again. "M-mph...y-you mean like a huge hole...?"

"A fissure is pretty much defined as being an opening in a rock, so, yes," Demitri replied smartly, earning an annoyed expression from Anne. "And we cross it how?"

"With a bridge, of course," Ranoku replied with a dopey smile. "There's one set up for any travelers that wish...to..."

The teen trailed off when they reached the end of the swerving path, Ranoku's smile fading. Sure enough, there was a rather large, ominous-looking crevice before them separating the group from the gently glowing cavern exit. However, there was no bridge, only pegs to show where the bridge used to be. "...what...bridge?" Demitri asked blankly, glancing back at Ranoku.

"Wh-where did it go?" Anne meeped in shock, eyes widening as she clambered towards the pegs, looking them over in a panic; the ends of the rope that once held up the bridge were seen, severed. "Someone cut the bridge!"

"Gee, what a surprise," Demitri answered with a thick air of cynicism, ducking down towards the ropes and looking them over. "...they were cut from this end. Ranoku, is there an alternate way around?"

"Not that I know of," the teen replied, shaking his head and prompting Demitri to stand up once more.

"Then either Ilohe didn't do this, or she's a lot dumber than I thought," Demitri said, closing his eyes. "She's basically stuck herself here as well, unless..."

Demitri's train of thought was cut off by an energetic cackle, prompting the trio to look up. Now suspended in the air on top of her Gengar was - of course - Ilohe, the Ghost-type hoisting the now completely removed rope bridge in its grasp. "Looking for me?"

"Ilohe," Ranoku grunted, frowning. "I thought we said no flying Pokemon!"

"We've been over this," Demitri replied sharply, burying his face into a hand in annoyance.

Said girl chuckled ominously as Zack and Hayden poked their heads out from behind her, looking a little less enthusiastic about the current scene. "You didn't honestly expect me to play by the rules, did you?"

"That's what I've been saying..."

"And now that you've so foolishly let your pride get the better of you, you're stranded here!" Ilohe finished, prompting her Gengar to toss the remains of the rope bridge back down into the crag, Anne meeping and leaning down over it, eyes wide in fear.

Ranoku growled back, fists clenched and teeth gnashed together. "You're really low, you know that...?"

Ilohe only shrugged back as her Gengar began drifting towards the opposite end of the crevice. "You're not the one trapped on the opposite end of a crack in the ground...so I don't think that much matters."

This prompted another groan from Ranoku, who could do nothing but watch as Ilohe dropped onto the ground, beckoning Zack and Hayden after her. "Come, boys, we have badges to get..."

"Right...right..." Zack mumbled back half-heartedly, looking after the trapped trio before following them out.

Demitri stared back after them with a slight growl, quickly fishing through his pocket and unveiling a Poke Ball. "We'll see about that..."

Ranoku glanced back at Demitri, almost as if expecting this movement, and quickly stepped in front of him, grunting, "You're not using Aerodactyl."

"And why the hell not?" the teen shot back in irritation, narrowing his gaze. "She's already cheated AND gotten out of here, now let's just fly and quit this place!"

"No," Ranoku replied sharply, grasping onto Demitri's hand and earning a glare from him. However, Ranoku's superior strength beat out Demitri's stubbornness and he let go of the Ball.

"You won't tell us why you irrationally challenge Ilohe, and adhere to these rules as if your life depended on it...it's getting harder and harder to actually trust you, y'know," Demitri mumbled, earning a frown from Ranoku.

"Well maybe you should try a little harder," the teen replied stoically, turning away and folding his arms. "Instead of just always assuming the worst out of me."

Demitri rolled his eyes, leaning against a nearby stalagmite. "Because there's so much good to be ha-" The teen didn't get to finish his comment as the rock suddenly gave way, causing him to fall back with a shout and prompting Ranoku and Anne to glance back at him as he fell. "Bagh...stupid...loose...rocks..."

He stood back up and began brushing himself off of any spare dirt, glancing around. His gaze fell on Ranoku, who was staring down at the rock Demitri had fallen over on with rather keen interest. Anne and Demitri followed his gaze, then looked back at Ranoku. "...what?"

"I have an idea," the teen replied, looking around. "What Pokemon do you two have at your disposal?" Both blinked and exchanged another glance before unleashing their Pokemon; Porygon, Aerodactyl, Kadabra, Meowth, Wigglytuff, and Weepinbell now gathered before them. Ranoku folded his arms in thought while looking them over, nodding. "Yes...yes, this oughta work."

Demitri raised an eyebrow as Ranoku began walking over to one of the nearby walls to the passage they had exitted out of. "What are you talking about? You have some other plan?"

Ranoku nodded slowly and turned back towards the duo, beginning to grin quite a bit. "We're gonna build a makeshift bridge. Outta this!"

The teen slapped a hand rather forcefully on the wall, causing Demitri and Anne to look it over slowly. "...outta the wall?"

"Out of stone," Demitri murmured, his gaze falling back to the stalagmite he had knocked over earlier. "That...actually...doesn't sound like a terrible idea."

Ranoku's grin only widened even further as Demitri glanced back at him. "Told ya I could handle this. Now, first thing's first...we need to know how much rock we need."

At this, the teen reached into his pack and pulled out a tape measure, planting one end of it into Aerodactyl's claws. "Fly to the other end of the gap."

Demitri nodded to the Rock-type, who began to fly across the crag, landing back on the other end. It gave off a shriek as Ranoku looked down at the other end. "...about fifty feet. Got it."

With the tape measure locked in place, Ranoku tossed forth another Poke Ball, releasing his Sneasel in a flash of light. "Alright, steady..." Ranoku began to snap the tape measure back in force, almost letting go of the device while it forced itself back into place. He handed the end to Sneasel and motioned to the nearby wall; nodding, the Dark-type began to leap up the wall with the opposing end of the measurement tool, only halted when Ranoku lifted up a hand. "Alright, that's good!"

Sneasel glanced back down at is Trainer while he glanced at Demitri. "I need Porygon and Kadabra to carve the shape."

The teen nodded and turned towards the Normal and Psyshic-typoes, earning a nod as both began to unload a stead stream of psychic energy. A small, clean crack was forming along the wall on both sides from where the Psybeams impacted, causing Ranoku to nod in approval. "Anne. Weepinbell and Meowth need to help pry it out once we've got the basic foundation down."

Said girl blinked and glanced at her mentor, though her Pokemon were a little moe prepared, flashing claws and vines. Demitri's Pokemon finished with the shape of the oval-like structure, prompting Ranoku to toss forth his next Poke Ball, unleashing Slowbro. "Psychic, give us a bulky enough base!"

The Hermit Crab Pokemon responded with a dull moan, its eyes beginning to glow. Several more, slightly more powerful cracks were heard at this, a few smaller bits of stone coming loose from in between the cracks. Ranoku glanced at Anne slightly, finally prompting the younger child to point forward. "Wigglytuff, get underneath it! Meowth, Weepinbell, go now!"

Vines were lashed around the top portion of the rock, forming around the now more clearly defined block Slowbro had telekinetically carved out. Meowth, meanwhile, joined Sneasel near the bottom as began slowly prying the rest of it out from below, causing the chunk of rock to slowly slide out, tipping slightly from lack of balance. Prepared, Wigglytuff took in a large gulp of air, causing its body to balloon out as the rock came crashing down, only to bounce off of the Balloon Pokemon's body harmlessly.

Ranoku began to smirk a bit more while unleashing his Salamence, the Dragon-type shrieking loudly once it was revealed. "Almost there...Aerodactyl, help Salamence carry it over to the opposite side."

"You heard the man," Demitri said, glancing at the pterodactyl-like Pokemon. It shrieked in approval before grasping onto the same end as Salamence, both of them beginning to drag it over the opening in the ground. Wigglytuff, meanwhile, helped heft the opposite end as well to speed up the process.

"Little more...and...drop!" Ranoku called out, all three Pokemon releasing their load and leaving the slab to drop rather forcefully down. "And there we have it! Salamence, test."

The Dragon-type obeyed, flying into the middle and dropping down a bit forcefully; aside from a light thud and a few spare pebbles dropping down. Ranoku's grin only widened moreso as he whirled around, extending his arms dramatically towards the makeshift bridge. "Ta-da!"

Anne began to clap and smile a bit dopily from the display, though Demitri kept his arms folded, retaining a slightly less impressed expression. "Well. I'll admit, you actually pulled through this time. I'm impressed."

"And it's about DAMN time, too," Ranoku replied confidently, rubbing the bottom of his nose. "Now c'mon, Ilohe couldn't've gotten too far ahead."

"To be honest, not really caring about that," Demitri mumbled, the group now beginning to step across the makeshift bridge with their Pokemon trailing faithfully behind. "We've been out here for several hours, I just want to get to the next town, or ANY neaby Pokemon Center, and get to bed."

Ranoku gave off a small shrug as the group passed over the bridge, approaching the cave's exit. "Fair enough." The trio stepped outside, wincing slightly from the light. Said light emanated from a group of lanterns hanging over the entrance, no doubt to alert any travelers that would be looking for the entrance or - in the case of Demitri, Ranoku, and Anne - the exit. "Baahh...still nighttime."

"Then let's get to beeeeed..." Anne whined lightly, leaning against one of Ranoku's legs once more. "Worry about training tomorroooooooow..."

Ranoku slowly glanced back at Demitri, who only nodded in confirmation. The older teen whirled around and scooped Anne into a bridal carry, causing her to yelp and dangle while the mentor began to walk off. "Come along now, we should almost be in Lavender Town..."


	40. One Does Not Simply Fly Into Saffron

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 40-One Does Not Simply Fly Into Saffron

Nestled in between the mountains, a rather small town was located; it seemed somewhat empty and rustic, the buildings there rather small and spaced apart. People went to and from their various businesses amidst the somewhat hazy fog. A light, rhythmic clinking noise was heard from one part of the town, soon giving way to a light, accordion noise. A small band of players was gathered on a small stage, their somber, somewhat eerie tune echoing through all of the streets.

"Bleh...every single time..."

Demitri and Anne slowly turned towards Ranoku, who gave off an audible shiver as they passed the performers. "What?" the other teen asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Those musicians always play the same tune, and it creeps me the hell out," Ranoku replied somewhat quickly, walking a bit faster in an attempt to get them past the performers.

"Hmm...I don't see it," Demitri mumbled, closing his eyes with a shrug.

Once they had gotten a safe distance away, Ranoku began to loosen up just a bit, sighing and enabling his arms to drop back by his side. "ANYWAY..." Anne mumbled, coughing and glancing up at Ranoku. "What're we up against in this next Gym anyway? So we can know our training regimen?"

"Hm?" Ranoku mumbled in a disinterested tone, glancing back at her. "Oh, there's no Gym in Lavender Town."

Anne slowly glanced over at Ranoku, her eyes beginning to widen in surprise. "Wh-...no Gym?"

"He said that before we left Vermillion," Demitri mumbled in disapproval, slowly shaking his head. "I was prepared to ask why we weren't leaving just yet, but..."

Ranoku turned around towards the duo, extending an arm behind him. "This is why!"

The fog began to spontaneously clear up a little bit behind Ranoku, enabling the other two to notice what was behind him. An enormous tower, easily the largest building in the entire town, with a sign erected next to the entrance. "Pokemon Tower," Anne echoed, squinting her gaze at it slightly. "What's that?"

"It's the most famous burial site in all of Kanto," Ranoku answered, turning towards the door and folding his arms. "It's a huge graveyard, basically. People from all over come to pay their respects; every time I come by Lavender, I stop by here to do just that, and so are you two."

Anne blinked in surprise while Demitri shrugged, stepping towards the door and closing his eyes. "Makes sense to me...it's the respectful thing to do, so-" The teen didn't finish his comment as he went to open the door, only to bump against it rather forcefully. He slowly stepped back and raised an eyebrow, mumbling, "The hell...?"

"Oh well, guess it's closed," Anne remarked quickly, twirling around and preparing to walk off. "Guess we better get moving so we don't waste any more-"

The girl's progress was stopped as Ranoku grasped the back of her collar, forcing her to a halt. "The Pokemon Tower doesn't just close...there has to be a reason it's not opening...maybe the door's jammed."

After forcing Demitri to the side, Ranoku took a few steps back and charged at the door, roaring and plowing into it arm-first. He bounced off rather clumsily with no effect on the door whatsoever, grasping onto his head. Ranoku shook off the effects of the charge and rushed back at the door again, while Demitri and Anne simply stared after him blankly. "...this is a waste of time," the girl mumbled flatly.

"Doesn't excuse you for trying to get us out of here just because you're scared," Demitri commented blankly, earning a glance from Anne.

"...pardon me?"

Demitri slowly glanced back at the now sour-faced Anne, shifting about the glasses on his face. "You heard me...I can tell you're scared."

"Am not!" Anne pouted back in irritation, stomping a foot on the ground. "Why would I be scared of a big tower filled with dead Pokemon and their ghosts?"

This earned a sigh from Demitri, who rubbed at his eyes and shook his head about. "Really...? That's what this is about? You know ghosts don't exist."

"Do too!" Anne whined back, stomping on the ground again. "How do you explain all of the Ghost Pokemon in the world?"

"There's a difference between Ghost-type Pokemon and actual ghosts," Demitri replied bluntly, shaking his head and earning another growl from Anne. "Learn the difference."

The girl stomped once more and turned back towards the door, shouting out, "Ranoku, please explain to Demitri that-"

"Quiet." Anne and Demitri both blinked upon glancing back at their mentor, who was now kneeling on the ground, hands clasped together. "I can't pay with you two bickering so loudly."

Both fell silent for a moment, staring at Ranoku rather blankly. Without turning his gaze away, the teen added, "Don't give me that look, if we can't go inside to pay our respects we'll do it outside."

A few awkward moments passed by at this, prompting Demitri to sigh and slide down next to Ranoku. "Alright, I guess if we don't have another way to do it..."

The younger teen began to mimic Ranoku's actions, leaving Anne to look them over before sliding to the opposite side of Ranoku, doing the same. Several moments passed in silence, a few other civillians passing by and glancing at them oddly. "...now what?" Anne mumbled lowly, opening one eye and glancing at Ranoku.

With this comment, the teen stood back up, stretching his limbs and causing Demitri to lower his hands. "Now we move on to Celadon," he answered, glancing at Anne and digging through his pocket. "I was expecting this'd take longer...fortunately, we should still be able to stay on schedule..."

The others blinked slightly as Ranoku tossed forth a Poke Ball, unleashing Salamence in front of them. The dragon-type glanced upwards with a slight growl, while its Trainer began to climb onto its back. "We're actually flying?" Anne asked, raising an eyebrow stepping forth.

"I know we're supposed to be staying out of it, but..." Ranoku extended a hand towards Anne, helping pull her onto the Pokemon. "I just wanna do a quick scope of Saffron on our way there."

Demitri blinked in curiosity while slowly boaring the Dragon-type as well, beginning to lift them higher into the air over Lavender Town. "Can't help but stick your nose into places they shouldn't be, huh?"

"Nope," Ranoku replied as-a-matter-of-factly, Salamence flying through the exits of the town, a small opening in the surrounding mountains that led to a flat-looking plain, with a few empty roads intersecting here and there. "Official Pokemon League business and all that, but I do have...connections."

"What kind of connections?" Demitri asked, folding his arms expectantly.

Ranoku glanced back at Demitri with a dopey smile, waving a hand about dismissively. "Connection-like connections."

"Informative," Demitri mumbled in a sarcastic fahsion, rolling his eyes with a sigh.

"Well it's all you need to know, smart-ass," Ranoku replied, grinning smugly while leaning forth, looking down Salamence's side. "Let's leave it at that."

Demitri sighed and closed his eyes, shaking his head while Anne leaned forth as well. Waiting a few moments, Demitri glanced down as well to get a look at where they were now, blinking in surprise.

Saffron City was - where sheer size was concerned - the larget city in the Kanto region. Skyscrapers towered over the streets, with only a few average-sized buildings here and there. Easily the largest building on the skyline had the image of a stylized "S" with two orbs in between each of the grooves; the emblem of the Silph Corporation. That wasn't what the group noticed most, however.

While the streets were normally rather energetic and bustling with people on their commute - from what Demitri had seen during his visits, at least - they were entirely empty now. Not a single soul wandered the streets, making the vast city look entirely deserted. Curtains were drawn to all windows, and doors were shut tight. All potential entrances to the buildings were completely sealed, as if trying to keep something out. "...geez...they look like they're prepping for a hurricane," Anne mumbled lowly.

"Or a zombie apocalypse," Ranoku added with a slightly ominous tone, causing Anne to glance at him with a terrified expression. The teen only chuckled and leaned back up, waving his hand about once more. "Oh come on, don't worry, THAT is awfully unlikely."

"Deserted streets, all buildings under lock and key, Pokemon League administration keeping people out of the area," Demitri mumbled flatly, sighing. "I dunno, the only thing missing is the entire place up in flames."

"S-so no zombies, right?" Anne asked, smiling in a slightly skewed fashion. "We're ruling them out now?"

Ranoku shrugged a bit. "Sure, sure...we'll see about it later, but I personally am not ruling out a zo-"

The teen was silenced when Salamence suddenly tumlbed forth slightly with a growl, completely bucking oiff the trio. Before they could actually fall to the ground, however, they instead flopped onto an invisible structure which gave off a hollow thunking noise once they impacted it. "Buh...watch where you're flying," Anne mumbled sharply, rubbing her face as Demitri leaned up, resetting his glasses.

"Okay, okay, lemme just take off my X-ray goggles so that I can differentiate between solid objects," the teen replied with a thick air of cynicism, prompting Anne to look back at him in an annoyed fashion.

"...we could have done without the snark."

"We also could have done without your illogical complaint."

"Well you...are...stupid!"

"Subtle."

Before Anne could lunge at Demitri in anger, Ranoku grasped a hold of the back of her dress, yanking her away. "Both of you shut up." The two younger Trainers slowly glanced at their mentor as he pressed his face against the invisible structure, humming while his Salamence experimentally raked its claws along the surface. "Interesting...I think it's a psychic barrier."

Demitri blinked at this, slowly attempting to stand up, and failing due to the sloped nature of the surface; it was undoubtedly a dome. "The Gym Leader of Saffron uses Psychic-types..."

"So they probably set the shield up to prevent anyone from dropping in...so to speak," Ranoku replied, leaning up and beginning to crawl back onto Salamence. "Come on you guys, I'm sure keeping up this shield alone is a pretty tough feat, don't want to make it harder with us poking and prodding at it."

Demitri and Anne both nodded and stepped onto Salamence, who once again lifted into the air and began to jet off, leaving the barrier where it lay. Neither of them spared a second glance back at the city behind them, where a few black-clad figures peeked out from behind a building, watching them fly off.

**-Later-**

The rest of the trip to Celadon passed by without much more of an interesting occurence, and within the hour, the skyscrapers of Celadon were visible. "Aaaaaaand here we are!" Ranoku called out, Salamence slowly landing and enabling the three Trainers to slide down.

Once all three were off, Ranoku returned Salamence to its Ball, the trio looking all around. Celadon had a very similar appearance to Saffron, albeit with a slightly more rural and natural appearance. Trees and gardens were scattered here and there as opposed to the almost entirely industrial Saffron City. The streets were also more crowded with people going about their business, another stark contrast to the last area they traversed through. "After all the silence of Lavender and Saffron this is actually really comforting," Anne mused, folding her arms behind her head with a sigh.

Demitri only shrugged back and glanced at Ranoku as he pulled forth his map, currently moving his index finger along it in thought. "Alright, so what plans do we have here...?"

"To see all the sights, of course," Ranoku answered cheerily, glancing back at Demitri. "Alongside the Gym, there is also a Department Store with the largest shopping selection available in all of the Kanto region."

This earned a starry-eyed glance from Anne, who clasped her hands together rather eagerly. "There's a fancier hotel that non-Trainers or those with extra money on their hands stay...a Game Corner..."

Demitri slowly glanced at Ranoku with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah, I've heard about that...apparently got quite a controversy in the past few months due to offering Pokemon as prizes."

The teen waved a hand about, tilting his head up with a sigh. "Oh that's just people overreacting. Goldenrod City's Game Corner in Johto does it and they don't get any flak."

"Well I don't know how different things are in Johto," Demitri replied with a roll of his eyes, sighing. "...anyway, not really interested in that."

"Then maybe you'd be interested in the Celadon Condominiums to the north?" Ranoku asked, adopting a somewhat sly expression. His tone and glance caught Demitri's attention, and he slowly glanced at Ranoku.

"...why do you say that...?" he mumbled lowly.

"Well," Ranoku began, folding his arms behind his back and walking away slowly, "rumor has it that there's a secret entrance in the back."

Demitri folded his arms slightly, staring after Ranoku. "And this would interest me why?"

"Seeeeeeeeecreeeeeeeeeeeeet," Ranoku mumbled in a rather deep, ominous tone, sliding towards Demitri, their faces very close to each other; the younger teen could practically smell the artificial flavoring of his energy drinks in his breath.

"Yes, yes, I heard that," Demitri mumbled, pushing Ranoku's face away. "Fine, I GUESS I'll go check it out..."

"Great!" Ranoku piped up, closing his map. "Given all these recent interruptions, I need to go make some changes to our schedule...if you need me, I'll be at the Game Corner."

Demitri and Anne both blinked, opening their mouths to offer a complaint, however, Ranoku had already darted off, leaving them alone. A few moments passed in silence, after which Anne began to skip off, calling out, "I'm headed to the Gym! And afterwards, I have some shoppiiiiiiiing to do!"

"Good luck with that," Demitri mused, sighing and beginning to walk off, looking up at the sky slightly. "He said north...might as well check it out..."


	41. Celadon City

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 41-Celadon City

Given Celadon City's rather innocent and "natural" appearance, the existence of a gambling institution in its streets would seem quite unusual. However, the Game Corner succeeded in blending in despite its glitzy and gaudy appearance, people passing it by or entering eagerly. The interior was every bit as flashy as the outside, with bright yellow floors and neon signs depicting various images hanging on the walls. Underneath them and throughout the entire building, slot machines were set up, many of them currently occupied by eager players.

"Aahh, yes, the Celadon Game Corner," Ranoku called out, spreading his arms with a grin while approaching the counter, where an employrr currently waited.

"Welcome to the Rocket Game Corner," she said, Ranoku turning to face her completely. "Are you here to play?"

"Got that right," Ranoku said, reaching into his pocket and producing a small handful of money. "Gimme some coins for this amount please..."

The woman nodded and accepted the money, Ranoku leaning on the counter in thought and looking all over the inside of the building in thought. While he was at first taking in the sights, his gaze eventually fell on one particular area, his eager expression deteriorating into thoughtfulness.

A figure was standing behind a potted plant, entirely motionless. While Ranoku might have normally thought it was someone simply loitering around, the fact they were remaining entirely still led him to believe they were instead trying to hide from something. And doing a poor job of it at that, as they were still painfully visible, and looking very conspicuous as well.

"Sir." Ranoku's train of thought was interrupted when the employee snapped in front of his face, the teen glancing back at her as she slid a small pile of coins in front of him. "There you are."

"Thank you," Ranoku replied, scooping up the coins and beginning to walk off, though his gaze kept itself trained on the figure that was "hiding" nearby.

**-Meanwhile-**

A few quick questions asked around the city, and Demitri had found himself at the Celadon Condominiums, a rather tall, fancy-looking building. He tilted his head to one side and began wandering into the alley behind it, covering his nose to try and stifle the unusually foul stench that came along with it. "Bleh...and yet it looks so nice when you don't go diving into the cracks..."

Walking a bit quickly in an attempt to get away from the smell, Demitri finally managed to arrive at the back of the building; true to Ranoku's word, a closed door was waiting for him. However, it looked to have seen better days, and was covered in rust and grime, the sign hanging on it completely illegible.

"My better judgement is advising me not to go through with this," Demitri mumbled, turning around and preparing to walk away. As soon as he did, however, thoughts began to plague his mind, Ranoku hanging over him with waggling fingers and a wicked grin.

_"Seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeecreeeee eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet..._" the mental image echoed, repeating itself over and over again in an eerie, mock-ghostly tone that eventually made Demitri glance back at the door, an annoyed expression on his face and a Poke Ball in hand.

"...I hate you SO much right now, Ranoku..." Demitri groaned, tossing forth the device and release Porygon amidst a shimmer and wriggle. The Normal-type glanced at Demitri, who looked up at the door. "I suspect a trap, or some other stupid trick, so I'd like for us to be on guard."

Porygon glanced back at the door with a small buzz, Demitri extending a hand towards the handle. However, after reconsidering due to how filthy it was, the teen opted to instead kick the door open, sending some of the rust and dirt flying off of it in the process. "Blech...Ranoku is so paying for my dry cleaning after this is through."

With the passageway opened, Demitri and Porygon began to step inside, where a very dim and equally as dirty staircase awaited them. Walking quickly to avoid prolonging his stay, Demitri led the way up the stairwell, constantly running back and forth as each new staircase was stationed opposite of the old one each time they hit a new floor. Fortunately, Demitri's hastiness began to pay off and the duo arrived at a new door, pushing it open and forcing the teen to cover his eyes to avoid being blinded by the sunlight. Once he had adjusted to the change in lighting, he glanced at where he had arrived, blinking in surprise.

The roof of the Condominiums looked much cleaner than the stairwell they had just taken, not to mention surprisingly sprawling and open, giving it the appearance of a vacant lot set up against Celadon's skyline. What stood out the most, however, was another, somewhat small-looking shack opposite the staircase Demitri had just arrived through. Trainer and Pokemon approached, their gaze attracted to the sign hanging next to the door.

"'I Know Everything!' Mentor Extraordinaire...?" Demitri read, glancing at Porygon with an unimpressed expression. "This has Ranoku written ALL over it..."

The Virtual Pokemon buzzed in response as Demitri knocked on the door, only to watch it drift open from the force exerted. "Hello...?"

On the other end was what Demitri could only assume to be a classroom; on the wall opposite of the board was a chalkboard filled with various scrawlings, two bookshelves set up on either side of it. A desk was set up in front of the chalkboard with a computer and some books set up on top of it, and four other smaller desks were lined up in front of it. On the sides of the room next to the desk were two pedestals, each with a glass case covering their contents; one had what looked to be a large variety of rocks and gems on display, while the other nestled a single Poke Ball.

Currently standing at the front of the room was a middle-aged man wearing a karate gi, a stick of chalk in his hand. Currently occupying two of the desks were two familiar children; a blue-clothed, blond-haired pre-teen, and his younger, darker-haired friend. The older man looked up at Demitri as he entered, murmuring, "Hum? We have guests?"

The two children followed the man's gaze towards Demitri, blinking in surprise upon noticing him. "You?"

"Well. I didn't think I'd be seeing you two again so soon," Demitri mumbled, sighing while Zack and Hayden exchanged a glance. "I'm gonna assume you are kinda busy, so I'm just gonna let myself out now."

"Wait, wait, wait," the man said, beginning to approach a bit swiftly and leaning towards Demitri. "How did you find this place?"

Demitri leaned back in tune with the man's advances, Porygon mimicking his motions. "My, uh...acquaintance directed me here."

"You too, huh?" Zack chimed in, sighing and shaking his head. "Ilohe made me come here. Said that I could use the refreshing on my Pokemon know-how."

A sigh escaped the older teen's lips, and he leaned forth once the man had stopped attempting to invade his space. "Which means I can only guess she and Ranoku planned this as another one of their stupid little wagers..."

"So you are here to learn too, then?" the man said, beginning to look eager.

Demitri glanced back at the man with an unimpressed stare, and sighed lowly. "I don't think I need to do any more learning, I did enough of that back in Pallet." A somewhat awkward silence fell as the man began adopting a comically depressed expression, lower lip quivering and shoulders slumping down. Demitri furrowed his brow and sighed lowly, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes. "...but I guess I could always use a quick brush-up now that I'm actually in the field now..."

"Wonderful!" the man called out, grasping onto Demitri and pulling him into the desk next to Zack, stepping to the front of the room once more. "Now since we have a new student with us, we can start from the beginning. I'll be covering a few different subjects, starting with Pokemon evolution!"

Hayden leaned forth a bit eagerly while Demitri and Zack reclined back, staring at their teacher with an apathetic gaze. "As you should know, Pokemon evolve primarily through gaining battle experience and training. But that's not the only way to begin a Pokemon's transformation!"

With this comment, the teacher pulled down on a chart hanging above the chalkboard, bringing down an image of several different Pokemon and gems, many of which were already on display in the case next to them. "The most common alternate method of evolution is via items known as evolutionary stones. Seen here, we have various examples of Pokemon and their evolutionary counterparts."

The man began motioning to several of the images on the chart, depicting Pokemon and their respective stones. "For example, Pikachu evolves into Raichu when exposed to the Thunderstone. Growlithe evoles into Arcanine when exposed to the Fire Stone. Poliwhirl becomes Poliwrath with the Water Stone, and Gloom becomes Vileplume when exposed to the Leaf Stone. There are many others that evolve with these stones, and even more different stones that cause evolution, but that can be left up to you to find out for yourself."

Demitri rolled his eyes slightly at this as the man pulled down a different chart; this one depicted what looked to be a heart and even more different Pokemon, many of which appeared rather small and cutesy. "Another common method of evolution is via strengthening the bond with your Pokemon! Having strong ties with your Pokemon is something even the most novice Pokemon Trainer should know, but not all of them would know it causes evolution!"

Extending a pointer seemingly out of nowhere, the man slapped it somewhat forcefully against the heart in the middle of the chart, before drawing an invisible circle around it. "Most of the Pokemon that evolve through love are still in their infant stages, and would require such constant attention regardless; such examples include Togepi, Igglybuff, and Cleffa."

"That's right, you gotta show 'em some love to get anywhere," Zack mused, glancing at Demitri with a somewhat sly grin. "Need to chisel out that heart of ice you've got there."

Demitri didn't respond at first, instead staring straight ahead a bit expectantly. When Zack didn't get an immediate response, his grin faded and he prepared to speak up, only to be cut off when Demitri glanced at him. "Oh, I'm sorry, I entirely forgot to laugh. Hahahah."

The younger teen's eyebrow twitched in annoyance, and he growled lowly before turning back to their teacher, who had pulled down yet another chart. This one featured a strange-looking machine with a large screen with two downwards-facing funnels extending on either side. This actually incited a curious expression from Demitri, while his teacher pointed at it once more. "The final most well-known evolution method is via trading!"

"Trading...?" Demitri echoed; his questionable tone prompted Zack to glance back at him with an incredulous expression.

"...no. You are NOT going to tell me you don't know what trading is," he uttered, Demitri glancing back at him with an annoyed expression and a slightly reddened face, betraying his situation and causing Zack to grin very widely. "Wow, I...I don't know what to say, I thought you were actually smart."

"Shut up," Demitri mumbled a bit bluntly, earning a hysterical giggle from Zack while their teacher only clasped his hands together.

"Well, it seems I'll need to deviate from the lesson plan a bit then, ah?" the man remarked, pointing at the machine once more. "Trading is when two Trainers agree to swap ownership of their Pokemon with each other. Such a thing has existed back since Pokemon training first came around, but evolution via trading was only discovered when the trading machine was invented; it's believed that some of the machinery involved with how the device works causes it."

"Makes enough sense," Demitri mumbled, closing his eyes and waving a hand about. "I wouldn't know about that sort of thing; I don't do social-type things, so I wouldn't be trading away Pokemon with people."

"Aahh, I wouldn't be so sure," the teacher remarked, glancing at Demitri's Porygon with a small grin. "Porygon evolve upon being traded with a particular item..."

The comment caused Trainer and Pokemon to blink, turning towards the man. "Excuse me? They do?"

"Indeed they do," the man replied, tapping the chart once more. "Porygon is an example of Pokemon that evolve while equipped with a specific item, such as like Onix with a Metal Coat, or Slowpoke with a King's Rock. Others, such as Machoke, Kadabra, Graveler, and Haunter don't need items to be held in order to evolve via trading!"

"Kadabra too...?" Demitri murmured, sighing and hanging his head, glasses sliding down his nose slightly. "Great."

The teacher leaned over the desk slightly, now face-to-face with Demitri, tilting his head to one side. "Come now, don't be like that. Such a conundrum pops up all the time, and many Trainers arrange for Pokemon to be traded back and forth solely to evolve them, only to reclaim them afterwards."

Demitri and Porygon both slowly glanced up at the man as he leaned away, the former putting his hand to his chin in thought. "Guess that means I'll ACTUALLY need Ranoku or Anne's help with that...good thing we decided to make up after all, I suppose."

"Now!" the teacher called out, sliding the chart back into place and retracting his pointer. "There are other different evolutionary methods, but those are much too specific and are best found through experimentation. It'd be best if you remembered the other stuff, however, for your test."

This comment prompted both Demitri and Zack to look up, the latter beginning to frown. "Excuse me? You didn't say anything about a test earlier!"

"I didn't?" the man remarked, putting a finger to his chin in thought. "...my bad. Yes, once we're done with this little lesson, you'll be taking a test! don't worry; if you do well enough, you will be rewarded..."

Zack's formerly annoyed expression lit up from this comment, and he glanced upwards, Demitri raising an eyebrow. "Rewarded...with what?"

The teacher grinned once again, then slowly began to turn around. Demitri and Zack followed his gaze towards the Poke Ball set up on the pedestal nearby. "Inside of that Poke Ball is an exceptionally rare Pokemon...if you can pass my test, then it is yours to take!"


	42. The Question  About the Game Corner

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 42-The Question (About the Game Corner)

As it turned out, finding the Celadon Gym wasn't as hard as Anne thought it might have been in such a large city. While she did get a tad skittish and asked around for clues, the most prominent - to "follow your nose", as cliched as it was - helped out immensely. It started when she caught an unusually perfume-y scent, and followed the source.

Said source was the Gym. A somewhat large building with one section appearing to be entirely devoted to a greenhouse, it smelled quite heavily of makeup and similar feminine products. Anne only smiled a bit more and entered the front doors, looking around at the lobby she entered. "Hello?"

The receptionist on the other end looked up and - upon noticing Anne enter - smiled and stood up. "Greetings, may I help you?"

"I'm here for a Gym battle," Anne replied with a cocky grin, jerking a thumb towards her chest and earning a nod in confirmation from the other woman.

"Right, follow me," she said, beginning to lead Anne through the halls. The smaller girl continuously looked around; inside she saw many other women working on taking care of different plants and plant-like Pokemon. If it wasn't obvious before, it certainly was now; Celadon Gym must have been Grass-type centric. "It is relieving to see a challenger like yourself come along."

"Really..." Anne mused, the duo turning a corner. The smaller girl folded her arms and tilted her head up, humming in thought. "S'it 'cause I'm a girl or something...?"

Despite Anne's seemingly sarcastic comment, the girl smiled and nodded back a bit cheerily, earning a surprised look from their guest. "Mhm! All male participants that come by are quick to voice their distaste...when they aren't of the...fruity variety. The only reason we let any in at all is because the League would chew us to pieces if we were to 'indiscriminately turn away challengers'..."

"Riiiiiiiiight..." Anne mumbled lightly, the duo arriving in the greenhouse section of the building, where a rather large grass field was set up, many trees and bushes lined up around the edges. "This is it?"

Another nod from the girl, who motioned towards the far end of the field. Currently kneeling down in front of some of the flowers was a woman with dark hair and a yellowish-red kimono, humming lightly. "Miss Erika! We have a challenger!"

The woman paused in their work and began to somewhat slowly stand uo, turning towards Anne with a serene expression. "Greetings...lovely weather today, isn't it?"

"Uh...yeah, it...kinda is," Anne replied lowly, looking up at the exposed sky through the greenhouse ceiling. She glanced back at Erika, whose head was not tilted downwards, eyes closed shut. The girl blinked, leaning forth and cupping her hands over her mouth. "Hey!"

"Uh?" Erika seemed to snap back to alertness, blinking and rubbing one of her eyes. "I'm sorry, I must have dozed off..."

"Obviously..." Anne mumbled, shaking her head about. "Anyway, my name is Anne Taikin, and I'm here for a Gym battle!"

Erika nodded back in response, reaching into one of the sleeves of her kimono. "Very well...but I must warn you, I shall not lose."

The woman pulled forth a Poke Ball, leading Anne to grin and quickly pull forth one of her own, nodding back. "Well I wasn't planning on it either..."

**-Meanwhile-**

A bleeping sound tore Ranoku from his apperent study of their schedule, prompting him to look up at the slot machine he had been using with only his feet, tilted back in his chair in a rather precarious position. Coins spilled out from the teen's apparently successful run, forcing him to quickly return to a normal sitting position and to stuff the schedule papers back in his pack to keep his attention on gathering the coins. "Aaahhh, that's it..."

Once he had gathered all of the coins in a small black case, Ranoku set it back on his lap, turning around; throughout his entire stay, he had made sure to keep an eye on the cloaked figure hiding in the plotted plant in between schedule-making and messing with the slots. This time, however, Ranoku was surprised to see that his mystery figure had spontaneously vanished. "Hah? Where'd he go?"

Ranoku stood up from his seat and began to look all around, humming in thought; they weren't anywhere to be seen. The teen scratched the back of his heard, creasing his brow in thought and musing aloud, "That's weird...I wasn't just seeing things, was I...?"

The teen tilted his eyes somewhat expectantly towards the space next to him, which was currently occupied by a rather pitiful-looking, middle-aged man wearing unkempt work clothes and with some heavy five o' clock shadow. "...see, this is why I liked having Demitri around, I work best with a straight man."

"Not gonna happen kid, I don't fly that way," the man mumbled flatly after casting Ranoku a glare. A few moments passed as the teen looked up in thought, as if trying to evaluate this comment before snapping his fingers and laughing a bit.

"...aaaaaahaaaahaaaa, that's a good one, I'm gonna remember that and credit you, creepy Game Corner dude," Ranoku mused rather dumbly, earning an irate roll of the eyes from the patron while Ranoku walked off towards another part of the building.

A sign reading "prize exchange" hung from the ceiling near a different desk, where two receptionists stood with several shelves and a larger board hanging behind them, detailing some of the prizes offered. "Hello, would you like to exchange some of your coins for prizes?"

Ranoku nodded in response to the question, looking up at the board with a hum in thought and leaning a hand against the counter. "Yeah, ah...gimme one of the TM29...mmmm...maybe a Silk Scarf...aahh..."

While the receptionists began going through the inventory underneath the desk, Ranoku's eyes began to wander once again; directly as they did so, the teen's attention snapped towards a door labelled "employees only", wherein he noticed the same figure he had been watching slip through. The teen blinked and glanced at the receptionists as they continued to search for his requested items. "...hold that thought."

As soon as both actually tilted their heads up, Ranoku was gone, leaving them to look around in confusion. "He's gone..."

"Told you we took too long," one of them grunted, smacking the other in the head in annoyance.

Meanwhile, Ranoku had slid towards the aforementioned door, peeking through; a hallway was on the other side, with a few doors undoubtedly leading to other parts of the building. What caught his attention the most, however, was the fact that the coat-wearing figure had just knocked an employee unconscious, and was now lifting up their body towards a nearby poster. "What in the..."

Ranoku prepared to step in and mete out some questioning, only for the poster to be flipped to the side like a panel, revealing what looked to be a lever and a scanner. The unconscious employee's head was forced to the scanner, one of their eyes pried open and causing the ground underneath them to groan, sliding out nearby and revealing a stairwell leading downwards.

"Whooooaaaa..." Ranoku mumbled flatly, jaw dfropping as the figure began to drag their unconscious prey down into the stairwell, which closed up once they had entered. As soon as the panel had closed up, Ranoku quickly slid through the door and pulled the poster panel to the side, looking down at the scanner with a pause. "Guess I'm gonna need some...genuine identification."

Thinking quickly, Ranoku dove into a nearby potted plant akin to the figure he had been tailing the entire time, waiting until another employee stepped into view. Fortunately, it didn't take too long for them to do so; the moment their back was turned, Ranoku leaped out, grasping a hold of the base of their neck and shoulder a bit forcefully. The motion caused the employee to stop and turn towards Ranoku with a visibly annoyed expression. "...fuck. That always works in the movies..."

The employee responded by quickly grasping a hold of Ranoku's hand, the teen frowning as they turned around, preparing to twist Ranoku's arm. Instead, he quickly yanked his arm away, using his superior strength to yank the figure towards him, extending his fist to plow them in the face, flooring them in an instant. "I shoulda just done that to begin with..."

With his target incapacitated, Ranoku lifted them up to the scanner, prying their eye open and leaving the machine to do the rest. A beep of confirmation sounded out as Ranoku pulled on the lever, causing the floor to slide out once again, revealing the stairwell once again. Ranoku smirked rather confidently before pulling his captive onto his shoulder, stepping down into the new passageway.

**-Meanwhile-**

**Battle Situation **  
**Pkmn Trainer Anne vs. Gym Leader Erika **  
**Location: Celadon Gym **  
**Single Battle**

Both participants' Poke Balls were tossed forth; Anne's Meowth appeared in a flash of light, while Erika produced a different Pokemon, looking much like a yellow, upside-down bell with a wide, gaping mouth coverfed by a leaf, and a fairly long vine extending from the bottom of said leaf and acting as a sort of "tail". Two leaves were stationed near its lower body; its appearance reminded Anne eerily of her own Weepinbell, only tilted upside-down.

_Victreebel, the Flycatcher Pokemon. The evolved form of Weepinbell. Lures prey with the sweet aroma of honey. Swallowed whole, the prey is melted in a day, bones and all._

"Begin with Acid," Erika said, Victreebel's body giving off a faint gurgling noise before several puddles of hissing liquid were fired towards Meowth. The cat blinked and quickly hopped away as they impacted the grass, sizzling harmlessly.

"Bleh..." Anne mumbled lowly, sticking her tongue out unimpressively. "Meowth, Fake Out!"

The Normal-type quickly hopped over the acid pools with surprisingl agility, Victreebel leaning back as Meowth clasped both paws in front of it, giving off a loud smacking noise that caused the Grass-type to wince. "Victreebel?" Erika echoed, blinking in surprise as Meoeth hopped down in front of the stunned Grass-type.

"Gotcha," Anne mumbled, grinning wider. "Now Fury Swipes!"

Meowth snarled in response and leaped up at Victreebel, spinning about swiftly and lashing at its opponent rather quickly. victreebel responded with several shrieks of annoyance, staggering back slightly while Erike looked up, blinking a bit. eventually, however, Victreebel seemed to tense up, having seemingly recovered from the flinch. "Stun Spore."

Before Anne could notice or call for Meowth to fall back, Victreebel had ducked down and lifted up its leaf, spewing a large cloud of sparkling, golden dust into Meowth's face. The cat Pokemon gave off a hiss and began to stagger back somewhat mechanically, visibly startled and having difficulty in moving. "Meowth! C'mon!" Anne groaned, watching as Victreebel advanced a bit further, its body flexing a bit and gurgling some more in what Anne could tell was preparation for more Acid. "Move!"

The Normal-type finally managed to do so, rolling to the side to avoid the incoming dump of liquid, Victreebel groaning and turning towards Meowth as it hopped to a halt. "Hmm...determined," Erike mused thoughtfully, a smile beginning to form on her face. "This is getting exciting...Victreebel, Giga Drain."

The Flycatcher Pokemon responded with a loud shriek, lifting its leaf again and suddenly causing a hazy green cloud to extend forth, diving towards Meowth. Anne's eyes widened and she looked down, yelping out, "Qu-quick, dodge it!"

Meowth growled back and attempted to run away from the attack, however, the gelatinous-like cloud manage to ensnare it and completely encase Meowth, preventing its movement even more than it already had. anne gasped as the cat Pokemon was lifted into the air, some faint traces of light emanating from its body and trailing through the green haze. "G-gagh..."

"Grass-type Pokemon are beautiful, wouldn't you agree...?" Erika suddenly commented, drawing Anne's attention. The Gym Leader closed her eyes with a light sigh, looking down a bit with a calm smile. "But just because of their outward appearance, it doesn't make them any less dangerous..."

"I can tell..." Anne mumbled, looking up at Meowth as it continued to twist about, trying to get out. The girl groaned a bit before quickly pulling forth her Poke Ball, calling out, Meowth, that's enough, come back!"

A beam of red light quickly recalled the cat Pokemon before much more damage could be done, earning a blink in surprise from Erika. "Oh...? I'm not sure it was defeated just yet..."

"Well I'd prefer not to take any chances," Anne mumbled, reaching for another Poke Ball and unleashing her next choice, Weepinbell. "Show it your own Acid, Weepinbell!"

The Grass-type began to groan in a similar fashion to its opponent befoire spewing a large gob of the sizzling liquid towards it. Victreebel shrieked again and quickly managed to duck backwards to avoid, causing Erika to smile a bit. "Oh...a risky move, sending out your own Grass-type against another more developed than it is...Acid, Victreebel."

The larger Pokemon began to gurgle ominously once more, its body beginning to produce more of the hazardous substance. "Yeah, I'll show you develloped," Anne replied, motioning forth somewhat forcefully. "Weepinbell, Vine Whip!"

The Grass-type responded by suddenly lengthening the stem on its head, lashing it towards Victreebel and wrapping around its body. The production of Acid seemed to halt and Victreebel gave off a muffled shriek, attempting to release the poison attack but unable to. Erika's smile faded as Victreebel attempted to gag the Acid out, held back by Weepinbell's constriction. Anne began to grin even wider as her opponent began to get reeled in, dragged onto its front. "Now Weepinbell, give it your own dosage of Acid!"

Weepinbell groaned in response and, once Victreebel had come within striking distance, spewed a wave of poison towards it, impacting the target directly. This aslso prompted it to release Victreebel, who shrieked from both the interior and exterior damage from the combined attacks, staggering backwards frantically. The repeated buildup of its own stomach acids caused some of them to some leaking out of its mouth, scattering onto the ground before it collapsed backwards, some more pooling out around it. "Victreebel?" Erika murmured, her formerly dozey expression now completely gone.

"Hah! Told ya!" Anne responded confidently, giving off a wide grin and punching forth. Weepinbell motioned its leaf forward in an attempt at mimicking the motion, while Erika returned her Pokemon, smiling once again.

"Well now...you're certainly an interesting challenger," she murmured, producing another Poke Ball from her robes. "It's about time I started getting serious about defeating you."

Anne only grinned back and folded her hands confidently, keeping her gaze on her now entirely alert opponent. "Hah...good! You're gonna need to be so you can pay attention for when I win!"


	43. Battles in Celadon City

Pokemon 101

Season 1-Kanto

Chapter 43-Battles in Celadon City

"Done."

The sound of wood clattering against wood was heard, causing Zack and the teacher to look up. Demitri stepped up from his seat at the desk, holding onto the sheets of paper he had been scribbling on prior. "What? Already?" the boy remarked in confusion, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"Yeah," Demitri replied calmly, looking down at him with an unimpressed stare. "It's all basic stuff, aside from the issues about trading, this was all stuff I've known for a long time."

Zack fell silent for a moment, gawking and glancing back at the teacher as he flipped through Demitri's answers. "...well now! All of your answers are correct!"

The man proceeded to reach over towards the pedestal, pulling out the Poke Ball and dropping it into his hands. "As for you, Zack...you're dismissed."

"Excuse me?" the boy remarked, looking up with a frown. "I'm not done yet, just hold your-"

"Demitri's already passed the test, so the Pokemon belongs to him." Another silence followed, Zack continuing to stare at the man for a moment. "...oh, I only have one of these Pokemon, you know! They're rare for a reason!"

"But that's not fair!" Zack shouted with a growl, standing up with a narrowed gaze. "He's older than me AND a major egghead! You should give us a test that we're both evenly matched in!"

The teacher fell silent at this, closing his eyes and nodding a bit. "...yes, yes, that probably would be preferred. Alright, new test!"

Zack sighed lightly and placed his pencil back on the table, nudging Hayden next to him. The smaller boy, who had fallen asleep by this time, tilted his head up, blinking groggily. "X minus the...I'm awake..."

"Come outside, students!" the man called, pushing open the door leading back outside. Demitri and Zack exchanged a glance and began to step out, watching as their teacher turned towards them, arms extended to the lot-like roof behind them. "They say that hands-on experience is much better than simply learning from any old book, so why don't the both of you battle to see who was the better learner?"

This earned a rather cocky grin from Zack, who glanced back at a surprised Demitri. "Hah...now THAT'S a decision I can get behind!" he shouted, hopping to one side of the roof.

Demitri sighed back and began to walk over to a side of the building opposite of Zack, murmuring, "Well...I suppose if it's for a rare Pokemon, I have a lot better incentive than I usually do."

"Good!" the teacher called out, extending his arms to both combatants. "The both of you'll use only three Pokemon, understood?" Both sides nodded, producing a Poke Ball from their clothes. "Alright! Now show me what you can do!"

**Battle Situation**  
** Pkmn Trainer Demitri vs. Pkmn Trainer Zack **  
**Location: Celadon Condominiums **  
**Single Battle**

"Oh don't worry," Zack responded confidently, glancing back at Demitri. "It's about time I got you back for the S.S. Anne!"

"I believe that specific time was me getting YOU back," Demitri responded with a sigh, both participants tossing their Poke Balls forth. Each burst open; Demitri's Aerodactyl stepped forth with a stretch and squeaky screech, while Zack called forth a much smaller bunch of slightly cracked, hot-pink eggs, each one with a scowl on their face.

_Exeggcute, the Egg Pokemon. It is often mistaken for eggs. When disturbed, they gather quickly and attack in swarms._

Demitri furrowed his brow slightly as Aerodactyl glanced down at its opponent, growling lightly. While the Exeggcute appeared a little nervous of the Fossil Pokemon, it still inched forth defiantly. "I have the type advantage, but..." Demitri shook his head slightly, then motioned forth. "Aerodactyl, Wing Attack!"

The Rock-type shrieked in response and leaped into the air, quickly dive-bombing towards a now alarmed Exeggcute. Zack frowned slightly and stepped back, growling, "Retaliate with a Bullet Seed, quick!"

All of Exeggcutes heads responded in unison, leaning back and spewing forth a large spray of glowing yellow pellets towards Aerodactyl. The Fossil Pokemon blinked and shrieked while attempting to swerve out of the way, now within striking distance of Exeggcute. It wasn't until then that the problem with this matchup became noticeable to either side; Exeggcute was so small that Aerodactyl couldn't strike it without crashing into the floor. Zack's frown deteriorated into cautiousness as Demitri blinked, stepping forth. "Pull up, pull up!"

Aerodactyl was quick in responding and zoomed right over Exeggcute, generating a gust in the process that sent the Grass-type toppling backwards. Demitri exhaled in relief, head down. "Bah...maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all..."

"You're telling me," Zack remarked, beginning to grin. "Maybe next time you won't overthink things and sacrifice workability just for a type advantage!" Demitri clenched his fists slightly as Zack motioned forth again, shouting out, "Hit it with a Stun Spore!"

All of Exeggcute's individual eggs began to spin around quickly, spewing a large wave of yellow dust towards Aerodactyl. The Rock-type swerved into the air with a startled screech, now circling around in an attempt at getting past the cloud now coating the field. "Gagh...try and blow it away!" Demitri called, stepping back slightly so that he wouldn't be caught in the cloud either.

Aerodactyl obeyed, flinging its wings upwards in preparation to beat the dust away. Right as it exposed itself in this fahsion, however, another barrahge of Bullet Seeds came flying out, impacting the Fossil Pokemon's front and causing it to shriek in panic, wincing and beginning to plummet towards the ground. Demitri's eyes widened as the pterodactyl crashed through the dust onto the floor, now twitching and groaning in irritation. "Bah..."

"Score one for Team Zack!" the boy called out, jerking a thumb towards his chest while Exeggcute bounced up eagerly. Demiri only frowned and returned Aerodactyl to its Ball, his opponent folding his arms expectantly. "Alright, who's it gonna be next?"

"Hmm..." Demitri murmured, looking down slightly and furrowing his brow. Porygon and Kadabra remained...the teen finally sighed and pulled forth another Ball, releasing the Virtual Pokemon to the field. It looked up with a buzz and lifted its snout, Demitri folding his arms expectantly. "Don't get too cocky, you haven't won just yet."

**-Meanwhile-**

"Well...safe to say I wasn't expecting this."

After descending the stairs in the Game Corner, Ranoku found an immediate change in his surroundings. A much more technological basement awaited him, with many machines lining the hallways and in the rooms. What Ranoku noticed the most, however, were many different people going about their business, all in black uniforms, each one consisting of a large red "R" on the chest.

"Then again...ROCKET Game Corner...thinking back, it was pretty obvious," Ranoku mused lightly, currently hiding behind a stack of cardboard boxes to ide himself. He rubbed at his face slightly, murmuring, "Demitri'd probably be throwing a big hissy fit about it too if he were-"

"You hear something?"

"Yeah, I think I did...came from over here."

Ranoku's eyes shot open once he heard the voices and footsteps approach. Thinking quickly, he snatched one of the boxes from on top of the pile he was hiding behind and dropped down into a crouching position, planting the (surprisingly empty) box on top of him in an effort at hiding himself. _"Huh, it DOES feel safe in here..."_

Two Rocket grunts finally approached the location Ranoku was now hidden, looking all around in thought. "...huh. There's nothing here."

"Probably just some of the prize Pokemon escaping again...look here, they even knocked some of the boxes down."

"Set those back up, don't wanna et chewed out by the boss for leaving the place looking like a dump."

The other grunt nodded, bending down to pick up the scattered boxes; the moment he did, Ranoku shoved it off of himself, knocking it right into the crouching grunt and knocking them back. "What the-" the other grunted, preparing to pull out a Poke Ball. Right befdore they could, however, Ranoku plowed his foot into their face with surprising flexibility, knocking them onto their back, unconscious. The other began to push the box off of them and looked up at Ranoku, setting a hand to their ear. "Intruder alert on level 2-D, repeat, intruder alert on-"

They didn't get to finish as Ranoku punched them in the side of the face, knocking them out next. The teen bent up slightly and looked around, pursing his lips. "Agh...now they're gonna be looking for me...better find a place to hide..."

Ranoku prepared to run off, only to freeze and slowly look around, pausing and blinking, his eyes trailing to the unconscious Rockets' bodies. "...then again..."

**-Meanwhile-**

**Battle Re-cap**

**Pkmn Trainer Anne **  
**Meowth **  
**Weepinbell **  
**?**

**vs.**

**Gym Leader Erika **  
**Victreebel (KO'ed by Weepinbell)**  
**?**

Erika tossed forth the next Ball she had pulled from her robes, the device bursting open and sending a new Pokemon forth. It resembled a large clump of blue-colored vines, a pair of eyes peering from inside of the mess, and two red boots sticking out from below to act as feet.

_Tangela, the Vine Pokemon. Its identity is obscured by masses of thick, blue vines. The vines are said to never stop growing._

"Tangela, use Constrict," Erika said, the Grass-type narrowing its gaze and flinging forth several vines from its body. Weepinbell blinked and quickly began to bounce about, attempting to avoid the incoming tendrils. Anne blinked, her confident expression deteriorating slightly as she watched her Pokemon try to dodge, the mass of vines becomiong more and more numerous. "Hmhm..."

"Nn...Weepinbell, Acid!" Anne called, the Flycatcher Pokemon quickly spewing several globsof sizzling liquid towards the incoming vines. Tangela blinked as they impacted the tendrils, causing it to shriek and quickly retract them, beating the appendages on the ground in an attempt at getting the acid off, Erika blinking slightly in concern.

"Tangela..." she murmured, looking up at Weepinbell as it bounced upwards, now taking a large breath. "Oh no..."

"Now, give it one last dose of Acid!" Anne shouted, pumping a fist upwards and prompting Weepinbell to expel a large wave of acid downwards, Tangela barely looking up soon enough to notice it.

"Dodge!" Erika called, now with a bit more forcefulness than she had before; the girl was wide awake now. Despite its Trainer's urgency, Tangela was unable to dodge the attack fully, the acid rain slamming down on it with considerable force and causing the Grass-type to shriek loudly. Anne clenched both fists with a victorious grin, though Erika remained silent, finally closing her eyes. "Giga Drain, now."

Before Weepinbell could even touch the ground, Tangela lashed out with its vines, ensnaring around its opponent's body and holding it up in the air. Weepinbell grunted and winced while attempting to free itself, groaning and shifting about some more. Anne blinked, watching as several green lights began wafting from the tendrils, slinking down towards Tangela's body and shrouding it in the glittering energy. "Wh-..."

"Giga Drain...a wonderfully horrifying move that steals my target's energy and uses it to replace my Pokemon's own," Erika explained. Sure enough, Anne watched as the light began wafting towards the areas where the acid had left burns, the wounds beginning to repair themselves steadily.

"G-gghh...that's..." Anne mumbled, watching as Weepinbell's eyes began to droop steadily, finally dropping closed as it faded into unconsciousness. The now visibly healthy Tangela dropped its opponent to the ground, Anne returning Weepinbell to its Ball. "This isn't over, you know!"

"I would be disappointed if it were," Erika replied, Anne fishing out another Poke Ball and unleashing Meowth. The cat stood back up and flashed its claws, Erika blinking slightly. "Returning to the field so soon...?"

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" Anne called, pointing forward. "Meowth, make that thing into a scratching post! Fury Swipes!"

The cat lunged forth, claws extended, shrieking angrily. Erika blinked and stepped back, responding lowly, "Tangela, respond with another Constrict."

Several tendrils were lashed towards Meowth, the cat quickly dodging each strike, even swatting some of them away with its claws and causing Tangela to yelp loudly from the slicing motions. It stepped back slightly as Meowth plunged its claws into Tangela's body, causing its eyes to widen slightly. Anne's own smile faded slightly and she blinked, pursing her lips slightly. "...u-uh..."

What Anne hadn't noticed, however, was the fact that Meowth's claws poked right through to the back of Tangela, having seemingly missed their mark entirely. The Grass-type's visible eyes seemingly creased into excitement, causing Anne's worried expression to turn to one of shock. "Giga Drain."

With Meowth directly in front of Tangela, it was easy for the vines to lash out around the cat, causing it to shriek and squirm about madly, lifted into the air as some bits of green light began wafting from its body. "Meowth!" Anne gasped, grunting and clenching her fists, stepping forth. "C'mon, get out of there!"

The Normal-type only shrieked back in anger as the light continued to waft from its body back to Tangela, who shrieked some more in a rhythm that one could have perceived as laughter. Erika smiled slightly and closed her eyes, folding her hands together close to her chest. "It seems this battle is beginning to tip into my favor..."

Anne grunted once more with a shiver and groan, eyes widening a bit more as Meowth continued to struggle, only for its eyes to widen. The green light coming off of its body soon became mixed in with another, completely white light, accompanied by a loud hissing noise. Erika looked up, her smile fading as she noticed the newer, white light beginning to overtake the green one. "Hm...?"

"Meowth...it's..." Anne murmured, beginning to grin as Meowth was completely overtaken in white light, its form completely obscured. The glowing silhouette began to grow outwards, forcing Tangela's tentacles apart slightly before they were seemingly severed out of nowhere, the Grass-type shrieking and reeling in the vines while watching as its opponent landed on the ground, the light dispersing.

Instead of the smaller, bipedal cat it had appeared as before, the Pokemon in its place was larger and bent down on all fours, giving it a decidedly more feline appearance. Its ears were slightly smaller in comparison to its head and a pair of whiskers protruded from its cheeks, the coin now gone from its head, replaced by a red circular gem. "Oh...Meowth, it..."

"Evolved!" Anne called out, pumping a fist up and glancing at Erika, chuckling lightly. "Now it's about time we got serious!"


End file.
